Your Wireless Router May Be a Security Risk. Not Because of Where It Was Made, but Because of How Old It Is.

Mark January 1, 2029, on your calendar. That’s how long the FCC will now allow existing foreign-made routers (which means virtually every consumer router sold in the U.S.) to keep getting security updates. It turns out the routers hijacked in one of the government’s most-cited Chinese cyberattacks weren’t Chinese brands at all. They were mostly Cisco and Netgear routers that had reached “end of life” status. The FCC says consumers using routers in homes and small offices don’t need to do anything right now.

The FCC says malicious actors have exploited security gaps in foreign-made routers to attack American households, disrupt networks, carry out espionage, and steal intellectual property, and it links foreign-made routers to recent cyberattacks. Critics note that the FCC hasn’t provided evidence that U.S.-made consumer routers are more secure than those built overseas. The new rule is designed to push manufacturing to the U.S.

So, what should consumers do? Two things. First, change your router’s admin password. It’s the master key to your home network. If it’s still the default printed on the sticker, anyone who gets onto your network, or into the router from the internet, can change your settings, spy on your traffic, or lock you out. To change it, log in through your router’s app or the web address on its sticker, find the “Administration” or “Router Password” setting, and replace the default with a long passphrase made of several random words.

Second, keep the firmware up to date. In the router’s app or settings page, turn on automatic updates if it offers them. If it doesn’t, go to the maker’s website and search for your router’s model number (it’s on the sticker) plus “firmware update.” If your router came from your internet provider, like Comcast Xfinity or AT&T, the provider usually installs firmware updates automatically, and you can still change the Wi-Fi and admin passwords through its app or website. If your router is more than six years old, check the maker’s website to see whether it’s listed as “end of life” or “end of support.” If it is, replace it.