Chinese spies are constantly targeting American companies. A ninth US telecommunications firm has been hacked as part of a broader Chinese espionage campaign, a top White House official said Friday. Hackers have given details of private texts and phone calls of an unknown number of Americans to authorities in China. At least eight telecommunications companies, along with several others, were hacked this month by Chinese hackers known as Salt Typhoon, according to Biden administration officials.
Anne Neuberger, deputy national security adviser for cyber and emerging technologies, said Friday that a ninth victim has been identified after the administration received information about how the companies were hacking into their Chinese networks. The information given by Neuberger has increased the tension of national security officials.
However, the FBI has not publicly identified any of the people whose information was hacked by the hackers. Officials believe that senior US government officials and prominent political figures are also among those whose communication details have been hacked.
Neuberger said officials do not yet know exactly how many Americans were affected by Salt Typhoon, partly because the Chinese were cautious about their techniques, but the vast majority were hacked in the Washington-Virginia area.
Officials believe that the target of the hackers was to identify who owned the phones and if they belonged to the government, their messages and phone calls could be spied on.
The FBI said most of the people targeted by the hackers are primarily involved in government or political activity.
Neuberger said the incident highlights the pressing need for cybersecurity in the communications industry, which the Federal Communications Commission will consider at a meeting next month. “We know that voluntary cybersecurity practices are inadequate to protect our critical infrastructure from hacking by China, Russia and Iran,” he said.
However, the Chinese government has denied responsibility for hacking.
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