Authored by Frank Fang via The Epoch Times,
According to a top White House official, Chinese state-sponsored hackers have successfully compromised at least eight U.S. telecommunication companies. Anne Neuberger, deputy national security adviser for cyber and emerging technologies, revealed that a threat actor group known as “Salt Typhoon” is responsible for the breaches, with targets including senior U.S. government officials and prominent political figures.
Neuberger reassured that no classified communications have been compromised, but the threat of ongoing compromises to communications remains until U.S. companies address the cybersecurity gaps exploited by the Chinese hackers.
The breached telecommunications companies have not fully removed the Chinese actors from their networks, indicating a continued risk of compromise until the security gaps are addressed.
Efforts are being made to enhance cybersecurity in various sectors, following the recent ransomware attack on Colonial Pipeline. Neuberger emphasized the importance of implementing minimum cybersecurity practices to prevent future intrusions by threat actors like Salt Typhoon.
The FBI, Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), and other international partners have issued guidelines for protecting communication infrastructures following the Chinese hacking incident. However, there is no definite timeline on when the Chinese hackers could be entirely removed from U.S. telecom networks.
Legislation has been proposed to combat growing threats from the Chinese Communist Party against U.S. critical infrastructure. If enacted, the Strengthening Cyber Resilience Against State-Sponsored Threats Act would establish an interagency task force led by CISA and the FBI to address cybersecurity threats posed by China’s state-sponsored cyber threat groups.
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