(Credit: PCMag/Joseph Maldonado)
A group of Republican lawmakers are urging the Trump administration to ban sales of TP-Link networking products, including the company’s popular Wi-Fi routers.
The Commerce, Defense, and Justice Departments have reportedly been investigating TP-Link for national security risks. On Wednesday, the lawmakers—including 12 GOP senators—wrote to the Commerce Department to voice support for its investigation, and called on the White House to block further sales of TP-Link products in the US.
“TP-Link’s deep ties to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), use of predatory pricing to eliminate trusted US alternatives, and role in embedding foreign surveillance and destructive capabilities into our networks render it a clear and present danger,” they wrote to Secretary Howard Lutnick.
The lawmakers claim TP-Link is a security threat because Chinese state-sponsored hackers have exploited the company’s routers and networking devices before, giving them a way to conduct cyberespionage within the US.
The letter doesn’t include any evidence showing TP-Link has been deliberately aiding Chinese hackers. Still, the lawmakers alleges that TP-Link has been offering low “predatory” prices for its products to help it capture “nearly 60% of the US retail router and Wi-Fi system market.” In turn, the Chinese government can allegedly piggy back off TP-Link’s hardware to launch future cyberattacks on the US.
(Photo by: Bildagentur-online/Schoening/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)“For these reasons, Commerce should immediately prohibit future sales of TP-Link SOHO (small and home office) networking equipment in the United States. Each day we fail to act, the CCP wins while American competitors suffer, and American security remains at risk,” the letter adds.
The FBI has long been concerned that Chinese state-sponsored hackers are laying the groundwork to disrupt US critical infrastructure in the event conflict breaks out between China and the US.
Although a ban would be drastic, some former US security officials want a crackdown on TP-Link, saying it's imperative the country remove such devices before they become a threat. Other former federal officials have also said a ban would send a message to Beijing that its state-sponsored hacking will have consequences for China-based companies that may be involved.
However, TP-Link says the letter is based on misinformation. “The allegations are categorically false, and we look forward to setting the record straight about our company,” the vendor told PCMag, adding: “To be clear, TP-Link is not a state-sponsored company, has no 'deep ties' to, and is completely independent from, the Chinese Communist Party.”
Last year, TP-Link went as far to establish a new global headquarters in Irvine, California, although it was founded in Shenzhen, China, and still has a headquarters there. As a result, TP-Link also told PCMag: “As a US company, no foreign country or government, including China, has access to or control over the design and production of our products.”
TP-Link also says it only has around a 35% share of the US market rather than 60%. “The allegation that bad actors from China used our routers for cyberattacks is misleading and disingenuous – routers made by many companies have been targets of attacks,” the company added. “TP-Link has been the victim of a smear campaign, driven by the goal of removing a competitor from the marketplace.”
The Commerce Department didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment. In the meantime, TP-Link says it’s confident the Commerce Department’s investigation will lead it to “recognize the security of TP-Link’s operations and products.”
TP-Link added that it has not received any inquiries from the Justice Department.