Netgear gets a pass to sell routers in the US, while others get banned

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has officially given Netgear approval to sell consumer routers that haven’t been developed or manufactured in the United States.

The US communication regulator has endorsed Netgear’s Nighthawk and Orbi consumer mesh router series for sale in the United States. In addition, Netgear cable modems and cable gateways have also received conditional approvals.

“We’re pleased to share that Netgear is the first retail consumer router company to receive conditional approval from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) as a trusted consumer router company,” Netgear CEO CJ Prober said in a statement.

“As a US-founded and headquartered company, Netgear is aligned with the vision for a more secure digital future for our customers. For the last thirty years, we have been, and continue to be, committed to leading the consumer router category for the United States and setting the bar for quality, performance, innovation, and security,” he continued.

In March, the FCC and the Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau (PSHSB) updated the list of equipment and services that are banned from being sold or offered in the United States.

This list, also known as the Covered List, contains products and services that are considered to “pose an unacceptable risk to the national security of the United States or the security and safety of United States persons” and are therefore banned from entering the United States.

Last month, “Routers produced in a foreign country” were added to the Covered List.

“This addition was based on a National Security Determination from an Executive Branch interagency body, including several appropriate national security agencies, determining (among other things) that routers produced in a foreign country pose an unacceptable risk to the national security of the United States and to the safety and security of US persons,” the FCC stated.

Routers that have been approved by the Department of War or the Department of Homeland Security and don’t pose risks to America’s national security are allowed to be sold on American soil.

The Covered List encompasses the names of foreign companies that aren’t allowed to do business with American companies, including Huawei, ZTE, Dahua, HikVision, Hytera, Kaspersky, and manufacturers of foreign drones or Uncrewed Aircraft Systems (UAS) or UAS components, like DJI Technology.

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