Salt Typhoon, a notorious Chinese state actor, has allegedly taken over government networks to compromise multiple American internet service providers and obtain entry to the interception portals mandated by US legislation.
The Wall Street Journal’s investigation reveals that US telecom behemoths Verizon and AT&T, along with ISP Lumen Technologies, were among those compromised.
For months, hackers may have had access to this “vast collection of internet traffic,” which included wiretaps that were ordered by courts and obtained for national security.
To access communications from network users, the US has long put pressure on telecom companies to build infrastructure for “lawful interception.” Of course, if the access systems are there, they can be exploited.
The Salt Typhoon made headlines recently for a suspected attack on American ISPs. Because of its name, it has been connected to other state-sponsored groups in China, Flax Typhoon, Volt Typhoon, and Brass Typhoon, all of which Microsoft dubbed “typhoons.”
These groups are allegedly coordinating to help the Chinese government achieve its geopolitical objectives, which may include invading Taiwan.
The potential for spyware and monitoring only grows as technology becomes more and more ingrained in our daily lives.
Big telecom companies are compelled to “cooperate” by creating backdoors for law enforcement or converting equipment into “spy machines” in the name of national security.
The existence of these access systems means that they can be compromised by threat actors or tech companies and used without your consent, regardless of one’s feelings about his/her government using surveillance techniques on its citizens.
Since these incursions are frequently used against foreign nationals residing abroad, Big Brother can monitor everyone. As a result, the US surveillance apparatus is not limited to the states alone.