• Source:JND
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The US government is preparing for one of the most aggressive moves yet in the tech decoupling war with China — a possible complete ban on the future sale of TP-Link networking gear inside America. This is not a casual investigation. More than half a dozen major federal departments, including Commerce, Defence, and Homeland Security, have now told the Biden administration that TP-Link still sits inside China’s influence radius and therefore poses a potential national security risk. And this matters because TP-Link is not some niche player — it controls as much as 50 to 65 per cent of the US home router market. A full sales ban would reshape the Wi-Fi hardware landscape overnight in the United States.

What agencies are saying

According to The Washington Post report, an inter-agency risk assessment concluded that even TP-Link’s US unit could still be influenced by Beijing, due to its deep corporate ties to TP-Link Technologies in China.

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Sources claim Commerce officials think only a total ban could actually mitigate the risk.

But that decision is not final yet.

How the ban process would work

If Commerce chooses to move ahead:

- TP-Link gets formal notification

-  TP-Link gets 30 days to respond

- Commerce then gets another 30 days to issue final ruling

There is still a window in which the company could argue for alternatives, like:

- Independent third-party security audits

- Domestic manufacturing requirements

But insiders quoted in the report suggest the internal leaning is toward a blanket prohibition.

Why this matters for US consumers and the tech market

If the US blocks future TP-Link sales, the router market splinters instantly.

Netgear, Amazon-owned Eero, and Google Nest WiFi would be the biggest immediate beneficiaries.

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In the short term, ordinary users can’t do anything about the geopolitics — but they can lock down their networks:

- Update router firmware regularly

- Change default passwords

- Disable remote management if not needed

These steps reduce attack surface regardless of brand.

Bottom line

If Commerce confirms the ban, it will be one of the biggest router hardware shifts in US history — and another escalation in the tech security split between Washington and Beijing.

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