Telecoms hack on US government officials is 'worst in nations history' and 'the barn door is still wide open' says senator
US authorities have recently revealed a US telecommunications hack that was said to have compromised the networks of multiple communications companies.
The FBI and CISA released a joint statement earlier this month identifying «PRC (People's Republic of China)-affiliated actors» as the cause of the hack, which the US government says enabled the theft of customer call records data, and led to «the compromise of private communications of a limited number of individuals who are primarily involved in government or political activity.»
Chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee Mark Warner, himself a former telecommunications executive, said «the barn door is still wide open, or mostly open» in the wake of the hack (via The New York Times). He has also called the breach the «worst telecomms hack in our nation's history.»
Last month, there were unconfirmed reports that phones were targeted by the hackers owned by those affiliated with the campaign of Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris, along with now-President Elect Donald Trump and his running mate, JD Vance, through an infiltration of US telecomms provider Verizon.
However, the hack now seems to be more widespread than it initially appeared. It was first thought that the hackers used stolen passwords to focus on a system that taps telephone conversations and texts under court orders, but the NYT now reports that the hack moved through multiple networks across the country by exploiting «aging equipment and seams in the networks connecting disparate systems.»
«This makes Colonial Pipeline and SolarWinds look like small potatoes», said Warner.
The hackers were said to be part of a group called Salt Typhoon, which reportedly has links to the Chinese government. The PRC has repeatedly denied claims by the US government that it uses hackers to break into foreign networks.
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Since the hack was exposed, the
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