'71% of US households get routers from ISPs': Why new FCC rules could leave millions stuck with outdated, insecure hardware

• FCC rules block new foreign routers while old, vulnerable ones stay in homes longer
• ISP customers cannot upgrade routers even when security risks become widely known
• Router approvals now depend on waivers that may slow down nationwide replacements

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has issued new rules intended to address security risks posed by routers produced outside the United States.

A number of recent incidents have shown foreign routers are vulnerable to cyberattacks, with campaigns like Flax, Volt, and Salt Typhoon making headlines across the world.

The new FCC rules require all new models of non-US-produced routers obtain a waiver before they can be sold to American consumers.

Waiver requirement adds pressure

However this creates a direct problem for the 71% of American households that receive their routers from internet service providers rather than buying their own equipment.

Those consumers cannot simply go to a store and purchase a compliant router when rules change, because the hardware in their homes belongs to the ISP.

Internet service providers operate on tight margins and typically replace customer routers only when necessary — especially for small business router needs amid rising costs

“To our knowledge consumer-grade Wi-Fi routers available in the U.S. are manufactured nearly exclusively in China, Taiwan, and Vietnam,” said Claus Hetting, CEO of Wi-Fi NOW.

“Foreign manufacturing cannot easily be relocated since it is typically based on long-term contracts with foreign manufacturing entities. Such contracts will be costly to terminate.”

Under the new FCC rules, ISPs must source compliant hardware for their millions of subscribers, but the supply chain for US-made Wi-Fi routers does not currently exist.

Without compliant hardware to purchase, ISPs have little incentive to retire the routers already deployed in customers' homes.

“It is not possible to build a consumer router based entirely on U.S. components; that part of the supply chain doesn’t exist in the United States,” added analyst Avi Greengart of Techsponential.

Figures from Ookla claim roughly 28% of Speedtest results in the US came from devices connected via Wi-Fi 5, while approximately 7% used Wi-Fi 4 or older.

These older standards typically lack the advanced security protocols of newer Wi-Fi generations, leaving them more exposed to the very threats the FCC aims to address — particularly for high-demand gaming router setups.

The rules could paradoxically slow adoption of newer technologies like Wi-Fi 6E and Wi-Fi 7, because ISPs facing compliance headaches may simply delay all router upgrades rather than navigate the waiver process for foreign-made equipment.

The FCC's intention to secure American networks is clear, but the practical effect on several households could be the opposite of what it intends to do.

Until the waiver process proves workable or domestic manufacturing materializes, these households may remain stuck with the same outdated, potentially insecure routers.

The rules assume that restricting foreign-made equipment will improve security, but leaving old hardware in place longer may actually increase the high risk the FCC is trying to eliminate.

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