Authorities in the United States are considering a ban on China’s TP-Link Technology Corporation amid concerns that its internet routers were linked to cyber attacks, the Wall Street Journal has reported.
The country’s Commerce, Defense and Justice departments have opened separate probes into the company, and authorities are targeting a ban on the sale of TP-Link routers in the United States by early next year.
An office of the Commerce Department has even subpoenaed TP-Link Technology to seek details, including its company structure. The newspaper reported, citing people familiar with the matter, that the defence department, too, has launched a separate investigation into the routers manufactured by the Chinese company.
The move comes in response to a letter by US lawmakers to the Biden administration. They had urged the government to probe the Chinese router manufacturer over fears that their Wi-Fi routers could be used in cyber attacks against the country.
They also cited Chinese laws requiring companies to aid the state’s military and intelligence objectives, and frequent Chinese state-backed cyber attacks exploiting routers.
Last year, the US Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Agency had said TP-Link routers had a vulnerability that could be exploited to execute remote code.
However, a spokesperson for the Chinese company said that its security practices are fully in line with industry standards, reported Bloomberg.
TP Link Technology Corporation said it “welcomes opportunities to engage with the US government to demonstrate that its security practices are fully in line with industry security standards, and to demonstrate its ongoing commitment to the US market and US consumers.”
The spokesperson also added that TP-Link Systems is an entity based in Irvine, California, that was renamed in July. It is no longer affiliated with TP-Link Technologies, the company founded in China in 1996 and long co-owned by brothers Zhao Jianjun and Zhao Jiaxing, according to the spokesperson.
Meanwhile, shares of Netgear, a San Jose-based home networking company and a TP-Link rival, jumped more than 12% on Wednesday following the report.
