Tennessee Attorney General Raises Security Alarms Over TP-Link Routers

Tennessee Attorney General Raises Security Alarms Over TP-Link Routers

Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti, along with 20 other state attorneys general, urged the Federal Communications Commission to carefully scrutinize TP-Link's request for approval to sell new router models in the United States. The coalition cited concerns about the company's ongoing ties to China and the potential security risks posed by its networking equipment.

Routers are the gateway between the internet and Americans' homes and businesses. The FCC has recognized that compromised routers can facilitate network surveillance, data theft, botnet attacks and unauthorized access to government and business networks. In March 2026, the FCC added foreign-produced routers to its blacklist because such routers pose an unacceptable risk to U.S. national security and the safety and security of U.S. persons.

"Your router is the internet's front door to your home or business. Tennesseans should not have to accept unnecessary security risks as the price of connecting to the online world," said Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti. "When a company that wants to sell sensitive electronics to the American market maintains substantial ties to a Communist government and has seen its products exploited by state-sponsored hackers, federal regulators should take a very hard look before granting approval."

The coalition's letter raises concerns about TP-Link's continuing connections to China, including research, development and manufacturing operations. Cybersecurity agencies have separately documented the exploitation of TP-Link routers by foreign state-sponsored hackers. In April 2026, the FBI, NSA and international partners warned that Russian military intelligence cyber actors had compromised TP-Link routers using known vulnerabilities as part of malicious operations targeting sensitive information.

The stakes are particularly significant because TP-Link products have a substantial presence in the U.S. consumer and small-business networking market. A compromised router can provide an attacker with a foothold inside a network where sensitive communications, credentials, financial information and other private data may be accessible.

The letter was also signed by attorneys general from Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Nebraska, Montana, North Dakota, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, Utah and West Virginia.