- The China-linked Salt Typhoon group infiltrated the networks of major US Internet service providers
- The attack could have affected systems used for eavesdropping by US government agencies
- The consequences of the attack are still being investigated, security risks remain high
According to recent reports, hackers linked to China have successfully penetrated the networks of several American telecommunications giants. Companies such as Verizon, AT&T or Lumen Technologies, which is less known in Europe, did not escape the attack. This cyber threat (Salt Typhoon) targeted sensitive systems that providers use to cooperate with government authorities to conduct legal wiretapping. These systems enable the monitoring of communications based on court authorization and are used in the investigation of serious crimes or security threats.
It is not yet entirely clear how much data was obtained or how deeply the attackers penetrated these systems. However, the investigation shows that the hackers had access to these systems for several months and possibly longer, posing a potentially significant risk to US national security.
Who is behind the attack?
Attackers belonging to the aforementioned Salt Typhoon group often appear under various names. However, they are tracked under the nicknames FamousSparrow and GhostEmperor, under which they appear very often. The group is considered a state-sponsored Chinese cyber threat. According to experts, this group has been active since 2019 and targets government institutions and telecommunications companies not only in the US, but also in other parts of the world, including Asia and Europe.
Consequences of the attack and next steps
Hacking systems that are used to monitor communications is particularly dangerous. This infrastructure is the basis for legal wiretapping used by the government to investigate crimes and may contain highly confidential information. Although it is still unclear whether systems used to monitor foreign communications were also affected, the case raises concerns about the security of US espionage operations.
The US government is now working with private sector security experts and tech giants including Microsoft to determine the extent of the attack and minimize any damage. At the same time, efforts are being made to prevent similar incidents in the future, which includes better security of critical networks and systems.
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The Salt Typhoon attack once again highlights China’s growing cyber threat targeting critical infrastructure. The case is yet another in a series of large-scale attacks by Chinese cyber groups on American targets, raising questions about the companies’ ability to withstand such dangerous attacks.
Author of the article
David caught up
