Chinese-Linked Cyberespionage Operation Targeted AT&T and Verizon Systems
The Chinese-linked Salt Typhoon cyberespionage operation targeted the systems of AT&T and Verizon, but the wireless carriers’ U.S. networks are now secure, the companies said in their first acknowledgment of the attacks. According to AT&T, the People’s Republic of China targeted a small number of individuals of foreign intelligence interest, and only a few cases of compromised information were identified. The company is monitoring and remediating its networks to protect customer data and continues to work with authorities to assess and mitigate the threat.
Verizon, on the other hand, has contained the activities associated with the incident, and an independent cybersecurity firm has confirmed the containment. The company had been monitoring and addressing the incident, and has not detected threat actor activity in its network for some time.
The Salt Typhoon hackers, believed to be linked to China, gained access to networks and had broad and full access, giving them the capability to geolocate millions of individuals and record phone calls at will. The U.S. Department of Defense and the Federal Communications Commission have not commented on the company statements.
China’s foreign ministry has previously described the allegations as disinformation and said Beijing “firmly opposes and combats cyber attacks and cyber theft in all forms.” The U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency has urged senior government and political figures to move mobile communications to end-to-end encrypted apps in response to the cyberattack.
The Salt Typhoon operation is believed to have targeted officials connected to Democrat Kamala Harris and Republican Donald Trump’s presidential campaigns. The incident has raised concerns about the size and scope of the reported Chinese hacking into U.S. telecommunications networks, and questions about when companies and the government will be able to assure Americans about the issue.