TP-Link,Sister that router company whose name occasionally pops up on your list of available WiFi networks, is being investigated by the U.S. government for antitrust violations.
The Department of Justice is investigating TP-Link Systems, Inc. for allegedly setting router prices lower than they cost to makein order to dominate the market, according to Bloomberg. TP-Link told the outlet that it hadn't received an official inquiry from the DOJ, but it plans to cooperate and denies any predatory pricing.
The cheapest TP-Link routers Mashable found are sold by Amazon for around $50, with some gaming routers selling for around $400. For reference, most ISPs will rent customers a router for around $10 to $15, according to Mashable's sibling site CNET, which found it cheaper to buy a router and modem rather than rent them from their internet provider.
The U.S. government's antitrust division has been on a roll lately. Google recently lost two antitrust cases: one for monopolizing the online ad tech industry, and another for monopolizing the search engine market largely wielded by the use of its Chrome browser. (That trial is currently in its remedy phase, and Google plans to appeal the other.) The Federal Trade Commission is also suing Meta for antitrust practices for stifling competition by buying up Instagram and WhatsApp. Globally, antitrust regulators are also on the march, with Japan and the European Union targeting big tech companies like Google, Apple, and Meta.
Under the Biden Administration, the Justice Department ramped up efforts to hold Big Tech companies accountable for anti-competitive practices, and that has continued under the Trump Administration. "Vigorous antitrust enforcement is essential to protect free markets and ensure that we all receive the benefits of competition," said Emma Burnham, director of the Antitrust Division's Criminal Enforcement Section, in a speech in March.
But there's more to the TP-Link story than potential predatory pricing. The California-based manufacturer of the black plastic WiFi router is also suspected of posing a national security risk. According to a December report from TheWall Street Journal, TP-Link, which has ties to China, is being separately investigated by the Departments of Commerce, Defense, and Justice. The routers' security flaws were reportedly exploited by Chinese cyberattackers.
"U.S. officials haven’t disclosed any evidence that TP-Link is a witting conduit for Chinese state-sponsored cyberattacks," said the Journal. So it's unclear if TP-Link is believed to be complicit in selling vulnerable routers, but the U.S. government may even be considering banning the devices altogether. Regardless of the outcomes of the various investigations, it's clear that TP-Link's connections to China have put the company under much more scrutiny.
Topics Cybersecurity Government
![Creator job opportunities grew 7x in recent years [April 2025]](http://n.sinaimg.cn/default/1_img/upload/3933d981/w950h633/20180307/K0-B-fxpwyhv6391295.jpg?zdy)
Creator job opportunities grew 7x in recent years [April 2025]
Casey Affleck will not present at 2018 Oscars
Frightening Pepe/Homer Simpson trading card sells for a ridiculous amount
Samsung Galaxy S9 and S9+ photos leak ahead of Feb. 25 release date
Nintendo Switch 2 release date, price announced
Evil genius Elon Musk confirms we can all buy his super dangerous flamethrower now
What's coming to (and going from) Netflix in February 2018
Evil genius Elon Musk confirms we can all buy his super dangerous flamethrower now
NYT Connections hints and answers for May 1: Tips to solve 'Connections' #690.
Andrew Lincoln will narrate Harry Potter audiobook about Quidditch
Best Samsung Frame deal: Free Music Frame with Frame Pro art TV purchase
Samsung Galaxy S9 and S9+ photos leak ahead of Feb. 25 release date
Lady Gaga's Grammys performance was straight fire, especially that epic high note
YouTube ads have been secretly mining cryptocurrency
Best travel deal: Take 30% off Southwest flights
The NSA literally deleted 'trust' and 'honesty' from its core values
Google reveals I/O 2018 developer conference dates: May 8
'Genital Jousting' is a silly game about dicks with a timely message
Watch how an old Venus spacecraft tumbled before crashing to Earth
Reese Witherspoon has 3 legs: A 'Vanity Fair' Photoshop story
TV reporter doesn't take any crap from random stranger hurling abuse at herRyan Reynolds wonders what a Disney 'Deadpool' would look like, gets glorious responseiPhone X adoption outpacing iPhone 8 and 8 Plus, reportNetflix and Mark Millar are bringing us an original comic series.Emilia Clarke and Jason Momoa had a glorious 'Game of Thrones' reunionIf Disney buys Fox, an Avengers, XThis nice young man informed a grandma she was filming herself by accident and it's gone viralEmilia Clarke and Jason Momoa had a glorious 'Game of Thrones' reunionAsia Argento shares list of 100+ Harvey Weinstein accusersAmazon celebrates Alexa's third birthday with these November 6 dealsMilo Yiannopoulos lost his weekly column for The Daily CallerHorrifying video shows a drone dispensing candy crash into crowd belowUnited goes retro to retire its final Boeing 747 aircraftHere's what Android looked like a decade agoApple avoids taxes by setting up a home on this English Channel islandHear Moana's 'Shiny' song sung in MaoriWatch as this oil painting loses 200Hear Moana's 'Shiny' song sung in MaoriThor: Ragnarok: What happened to Sif and the Warriors Three?Hear Moana's 'Shiny' song sung in Maori “The Solution,” a Poem by Sharon Olds (1985) The 10 best and funniest tweets of the week, including a tornado warning and New Jersey 'The Fall of the House of Usher': Every sibling is named for a Poe character Listen to James Baldwin Read from “Another Country” How to see your Spotify Pie chart, the latest viral website that analyzes your Spotify data Google Nest Thermostat deal: Save $40 on Prime Day 2 The Rediscovered Prison Memoir of a Black Man in the 1850s TikTok chef Bottoms Digest claims Postmates ripped off bottom Best Prime Day deals under $100 — October 2023 Alert: Mr. Darcy’s Dripping Wet Shirt Is Coming to the USA My Brief and Puzzling Career As a Security Guard On World Poetry Day David Szalay Wins Plimpton Prize; Chris Bachelder Wins Southern Prize Best Prime Day Apple deal: 17% off 5th gen iPad Air 11 of the weirdest DALL In Proust’s Bedroom: If These (Cork Whiting Awards 2016: Madeleine George, Drama Corgi derby sees small dogs vying for the Queen's Platinum Jubilee crown Painting a Poem—Diane Szczepaniak’s Watercolors & Wallace Stevens Whither the Fog Machine? and Other News by Dan Piepenbring