C
MODERATE RISK
Cisco's entry-level SMB VPN router. US-headquartered with no Chinese government jurisdiction concerns, but Chinese manufacturing makes this device subject to the March 2026 FCC foreign manufacture ban. Cisco's patch record is strong — the primary concern is manufacturing origin under the new rule.
- Foreign manufacture — FCC ban applies: The RV160 is manufactured in China. The FCC's March 23, 2026 rule bans new foreign-manufactured networking equipment. No US manufacturing exemption is on file.
- SMB target profile — patch discipline required: Small business environments handling sensitive data or payment systems carry higher risk if firmware updates are delayed. Cisco's update cadence is strong, but deployment-level patching is the critical variable.
FCC & Ban Risk
61
/100
C
Supply chain · FCC status · CVEs · Patch support
Security Capabilities
19
/100
F
Zero-Trust · VPN · Segmentation · Monitoring
🏭 Manufacturer
US-headquartered
Cisco Systems, Inc., San Jose, CA — NYSE: CSCO. Entry-level SMB VPN router manufactured in China.
Manufactured in: China
🏛️ FCC Status
FCC authorized — foreign manufacture rule applies
Foreign manufacture — subject to FCC March 2026 ban
🛡️ Patch Support
Active
Whether security vulnerabilities are actively being patched
⚠️ Key Finding
high
Foreign manufacture — FCC ban applies
Router Security Updates
Get notified if new vulnerabilities are discovered for your Cisco RV160. Free, no spam.
🔒
Security capabilities comparison
We benchmark your router against Rio Router across 8 dimensions so you can see exactly what gaps exist - and what a fully-covered setup looks like.
CISCO
your router
Rio Router™
full standard
Zero-Trust Device Admission
Every new device is blocked by default - admin must approve it once, even if it has the right password
Not available
Available
Network Segmentation (VLANs)
Devices on your network are isolated from each other, so a hacked smart TV can't reach your laptop
Partial
Available
Router-Level VPN for All Devices
All traffic - including smart devices that can't run VPN apps - is encrypted before leaving your home
Partial
Available
Domain Allowlisting
Block everything except approved sites; more effective than trying to blacklist billions of harmful URLs
Not available
Available
Granular Password Control
Separate passwords per network zone - changing one doesn't affect others
Partial
Available
Guest Auto-Expiry
Guest devices are automatically removed when they leave; neighbors can't reconnect without re-approval
Not available
Available
Clean Supply Chain
Manufactured outside Chinese legal jurisdiction - not subject to China's National Intelligence Law
Not available
Available
Active Threat Monitoring
DNS filtering, firewall, activity logs, and ongoing security patch support
Not available
Available
We use Rio Router as the benchmark because it’s the only consumer router built to score 8/8 on this framework - it shows you what a fully-covered setup looks like, not just what’s typical.
See Rio →
See all Cisco models: Cisco brand overview →
What you should do
1
Apply latest firmware via Cisco.com
2
Audit VPN configuration — RV160 VPN is often the primary attack surface
3
Plan hardware migration per FCC foreign manufacture rule
4
Disable unused WAN services
How this was scored · verified March 2026: This rating combines FCC authorization status, manufacturer legal jurisdiction, CVEs from NIST NVD, active patch support status, and CISA advisory mentions. See full methodology →
Reference Data
Sources & evidence
All findings trace to publicly verifiable primary sources - US government databases, official FCC filings, and NIST CVE records. No proprietary or anonymous sources are used.
Full data source documentation: Scoring Methodology & Citations →