Moolenaar, Krishnamoorthi Call for Investigation into Chinese Wi-Fi Routers in U.S. Vulnerable to CCP Hacking & Data Harvesting

Chairman John Moolenaar (R-MI) and Ranking Member Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-IL) of the House Select Committee on the Strategic Competition Between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party identified the growing risk posed by Chinese Wi-Fi routers in the United States manufactured by TP-Link Technologies and called on the Department of Commerce to verify this threat and investigate the company.

TP-Link is a company established in the People’s Republic of China (PRC) and is the world’s largest provider of Wi-Fi products, selling over 160 million products annually to more than 170 countries. TP-Link and its affiliates are also a leading Wi-Fi router provider in the United States. Because TP-Link routers are made in the PRC with Chinese technology, there are concerns that state-sponsored hackers may be able to more easily compromise the routers and infiltrate U.S. systems. Moreover, TP-Link is subject to draconian ‘national security’ laws in the PRC and can be forced to hand over sensitive U.S. information by Chinese intelligence officials. Alarmingly, just last year, security researchers found that PRC cyber military forces used TP-Link routers as part of a hacking campaign that targeted government officials in European countries.

In the letter to Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo, the lawmakers write, “TP-Link’s unusual degree of vulnerabilities and required compliance with PRC law are in and of themselves disconcerting. When combined with the PRC government’s common use of SOHO [small office/home office] routers like TP-Link to perpetrate extensive cyberattacks in the United States, it becomes significantly alarming.”

Moolenaar and Krishnamoorthi continue, “Given the PRC’s data and national security laws, the proliferation of PRC-made SOHO routers in the United States, and the demonstrated willingness of the PRC government to sponsor hacking attempts against the United States using PRC-affiliated SOHO routers like those made by TP-Link, we request that Commerce verify the threat posed by PRC-affiliated SOHO routers—particularly those offered by the world’s largest manufacturer, TP-Link—and consider using its ICTS [information and communication technology services] authorities to properly mitigate this glaring national security issue.”

Chairman Moolenaar and Ranking Member Krishnamoorthi asked for Secretary Raimondo’s threat assessment and mitigation plan by August 30th.

View the lawmakers’ letter HERE or continue reading below: