Chinese hackers known as “Salt Typhoon” have infiltrated a U.S. government surveillance database, compromising the private communications of millions of Americans. The attack has exposed weaknesses in telecom infrastructure and sparked alarm among national security officials.
Sen. Mark Warner (D-VA) described the breach as unparalleled, stating, “This makes past hacks like the Colonial Pipeline incident look like child’s play.” The hackers reportedly accessed a database of law enforcement wiretap requests, exposing unencrypted call and text records.
1/ A "Salt Typhoon" hack shows why backdoors are a gift to China. It's been widely reported that the breach of US telecom systems allowed Chinese hacker group to listen in on the conversations of national security officials and political figures incl. @realDonaldTrump @JDVance. pic.twitter.com/iHpNbbr6H4
— Project for Privacy & Surveillance Accountability (@savingprivacy) November 25, 2024
Telecom giants AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon were among the companies affected. The breach, detected in September, allowed Salt Typhoon to exploit trust connections within telecom networks, intercepting sensitive communications.
While fewer than 150 individuals were directly targeted, the stolen data potentially impacts millions. The breach has also reportedly affected high-profile figures, including President-elect Donald Trump and Vice President-elect J.D. Vance.
Officials call China's cyberattack 'worst telecom hack' in US history | CNN#espionage #surveillance #spying #politics #China #technology #telecommunications #hacking #politicshttps://t.co/wSCXiQzfcH via @YouTube
— 0ok (@0ok) November 25, 2024
U.S. agencies, including the FBI and CISA, have confirmed the attack as an espionage operation. Officials stress that end-to-end encrypted communications, such as those on Signal, remain secure.
Beijing has denied involvement, but experts believe this is part of a broader effort to exfiltrate U.S. data. “China is expanding its cyber operations to target critical infrastructure worldwide,” Warner stated.
The FBI and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Agency are warning that unencrypted texts between Android and iPhones could pose a serious risk following the Salt Typhoon hack of several US telecommunication providers. https://t.co/XUw0HtDiwI pic.twitter.com/2dmCZenglt
— Fox News (@FoxNews) December 8, 2024
White House – The U.S. believes that an alleged sweeping Chinese cyber espionage campaign known as Salt Typhoon targeted and recorded telephone calls of "very senior" American political figures
Anne Neuberger, US deputy national security adviser👇https://t.co/dgeGMHl1KC— Lilian Armstrong (@LilianArm99) December 8, 2024
The incident underscores the need for improved cybersecurity measures as the U.S. works to protect sensitive systems from foreign adversaries.
