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The ongoing cyber-attack was first reported last month
A recent espionage attack on US telcos, allegedly linked to the People’s Republic of China. is the “worst telecom hack in our nation’s history – by far”, according to the chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee Mark Warner.
Investigators believe these hackers may have gained access to confidential data via wiretap requests to telcos from federal agencies.
The full scope of the breach is still being assessed, with major tech firms like Microsoft and Mandiant supporting the investigation.
Over the weekend, US senators sat down with telecom executives and federal officials to discuss the attacks. The breach, which has been attributed to a group known as “Salt Typhoon,” exploited weaknesses in systems used for lawful surveillance, potentially exposing sensitive government and private messages.
The discussions focused on how hackers gained long-term access to these systems, raising questions about whether current security standards are strong enough. Officials stressed the need for telecom companies to strengthen their defenses and improve coordination with the government to stay ahead of these threats.
“National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan and Deputy National Security Advisor for Cyber and Emerging Technology Anne Neuberger hosted a meeting with executives from the telecommunications sector to share intelligence and discuss the People’s Republic of China’s significant cyber espionage campaign targeting the sector,” read a government statement.
“The meeting was an opportunity to hear from telecommunications sector executives on how the U.S. Government can partner with and support the private sector on hardening against sophisticated nation state attacks.”
Names of the attending companies were not disclosed, but it is thought that AT&T, Verizon, and Lumen are among targeted companies.
The Chinese Embassy in Washington has vehemently denied government involvement in the cyberattacks, calling the accusations “a distortion of fact” and a political attempt to “smear” China. In a new statement released on Friday, Liu Pengyu, spokesperson for China’s embassy in Washington, said that “for quite some time, the US side has been floating all sorts of disinformation about threats of “Chinese hackers” to serve its own geopolitical purposes. China firmly opposes and combats all kinds of cyber attacks.”
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