Lawmakers press agencies, telecoms for more details on Salt Typhoon hacks | CyberScoop<\/title> <meta name=\"description\" content=\"Congressional outreach follows reporting that the Beijing-linked group breached Verizon, AT&T and Lumen networks.\"> <link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/congress-salt-typhoon-hack-telecoms-att-lumen-verizon\/\"> <meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\"> <meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\"> <meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Lawmakers press agencies, telecoms for more details on Salt Typhoon hacks\"> <meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Congressional outreach follows reporting that the Beijing-linked group breached Verizon, AT&T and Lumen networks.\"> <meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/congress-salt-typhoon-hack-telecoms-att-lumen-verizon\/\"> <meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"CyberScoop\"> <meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2024-10-11T18:05:36+00:00\"> 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href=\"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/01\/cropped-cs_favicon-2.png?w=180\">\n<meta name=\"msapplication-TileImage\" content=\"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/01\/cropped-cs_favicon-2.png?w=270\"> <\/head><body class=\"post-template-default single single-post postid-82113 single-format-standard\" id=\"readabilityBody\"> <a href=\"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/congress-salt-typhoon-hack-telecoms-att-lumen-verizon\/#main\" class=\"skip-to-content-link visually-hidden-focusable\">Skip to main content<\/a> <\/p>\n<div class=\"ad ad--top ad--top-desktop\">\n<div class=\"ad__inner\"> <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Advertisement<\/span> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p> <main id=\"main\" role=\"main\" tabindex=\"-1\"> <\/p>\n<div class=\"ad ad--top ad--top-mobile\">\n<div class=\"ad__inner\"> <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Advertisement<\/span> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<section id=\"stickybar\" class=\"stickybar stickybar--newsletter js-stickybar\" readability=\"0.82\"> <button class=\"stickybar__close js-stickybar-close\" aria-controls=\"stickybar\"> <svg class=\"icon icon--close\" width=\"21\" height=\"22\" viewBox=\"0 0 21 22\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"m.822.518-.805.805L9.695 11 .017 20.678l.805.805 9.678-9.678 9.677 9.678.806-.805L11.305 11l9.678-9.677-.806-.805-9.677 9.677L.822.518Z\" fill=\"currentColor\" \/><\/svg> <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Close<\/span> <\/button> <\/section>\n<article class=\"single-article content\">\n<div class=\"single-article__container js-single-article-content\">\n<header class=\"single-article__header \" readability=\"26.429400386847\">\n<div class=\"single-article__header-content\" readability=\"33.383458646617\">\n<ul class=\"single-article__eyebrow\">\n<li class=\"single-article__category\"> <a class=\"single-article__category-link\" href=\"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/news\/cybersecurity\/\"> <span>Cybersecurity<\/span> <\/a> <\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p> On Thursday, Republican and Democratic leaders on the House Energy and Commerce Committee wrote to the three telecommunication firms asking for more information on their response, calling the incident \u201cextremely alarming for both economic and national security reasons.\u201d <\/p>\n<p>   <\/div>\n<div class=\"single-article__cover-wrap\">\n<figure class=\"single-article__cover\"> <img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" fetchpriority=\"high\" width=\"640\" height=\"426\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/lawmakers-press-agencies-telecoms-for-more-details-on-salt-typhoon-hacks.jpg?resize=640%2C426&ssl=1\" class=\"single-article__cover-image wp-post-image\" alt decoding=\"async\" fetchpriority=\"high\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/lawmakers-press-agencies-telecoms-for-more-details-on-salt-typhoon-hacks-2.jpg 1920w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/lawmakers-press-agencies-telecoms-for-more-details-on-salt-typhoon-hacks-2.jpg?resize=300,200 300w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/lawmakers-press-agencies-telecoms-for-more-details-on-salt-typhoon-hacks-2.jpg?resize=768,512 768w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/lawmakers-press-agencies-telecoms-for-more-details-on-salt-typhoon-hacks-2.jpg?resize=1024,683 1024w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/lawmakers-press-agencies-telecoms-for-more-details-on-salt-typhoon-hacks-2.jpg?resize=1536,1024 1536w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/lawmakers-press-agencies-telecoms-for-more-details-on-salt-typhoon-hacks-2.jpg?resize=600,400 600w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/lawmakers-press-agencies-telecoms-for-more-details-on-salt-typhoon-hacks-2.jpg?resize=252,168 252w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/lawmakers-press-agencies-telecoms-for-more-details-on-salt-typhoon-hacks-2.jpg?resize=506,337 506w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/lawmakers-press-agencies-telecoms-for-more-details-on-salt-typhoon-hacks-2.jpg?resize=1013,675 1013w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/lawmakers-press-agencies-telecoms-for-more-details-on-salt-typhoon-hacks-2.jpg?resize=1265,843 1265w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1013px) 100vw, 1013px\"><figcaption> Visitors walk past the U.S. Capitol on September 11, 2023 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla\/Getty Images) <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/header>\n<div class=\"single-article__content\">\n<div class=\"single-article__content-inner has-drop-cap\"> <html readability=\"44.626082991336\"><body readability=\"91.151962075323\"><\/p>\n<p>Members of Congress are pressing federal agencies and telecommunications companies for more information about a reported Chinese government-backed hacking campaign that breached the networks of at least three major U.S. telecoms.<\/p>\n<p>Earlier this month, the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wsj.com\/politics\/national-security\/u-s-officials-race-to-understand-severity-of-chinas-salt-typhoon-hacks-6e7c3951\">Wall Street Journal reported<\/a> that a hacking group tied to Beijing successfully broke into the networks of Verizon, AT&T and Lumen Technologies. The hackers reportedly went undetected for months, possibly gaining access to systems and infrastructure used to process court-authorized wiretaps.<\/p>\n<p>On Thursday, Republican and Democratic leaders on the House Energy and Commerce Committee wrote to the three telecommunication firms asking for more information on their response, calling the incident \u201cextremely alarming for both economic and national security reasons.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIn an age where Americans rely heavily on your services for communication and connectivity, the integrity of your networks is paramount,\u201d wrote Reps. Cathy McMorris Rodgers, R-Wa., and Frank Pallone, D-N.J., chair and ranking member on the committee, as well as Bob Latta, R-Ohio, and Doris Matsui, D-Calif., chair and ranking member of the Communications and Technology subcommittee. \u201cIt is vital that cybersecurity protocols are enhanced to better protect American\u2019s [sic] data against increasingly sophisticated attacks, especially from our foreign adversaries.\u201d<\/p>\n<div class=\"ad ad--inline_1 \">\n<div class=\"ad__inner\"> <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Advertisement<\/span> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>The members requested a briefing with the telecoms to learn more about when they became aware of the compromise, findings from any internal investigations and subsequent engagement with law enforcement, their plans to notify affected customers and what if any corrective steps have been taken to harden cybersecurity in the wake of the incident.<\/p>\n<p>The House Homeland Security Committee has also requested a briefing on the hack from the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, according to a committee aide.<\/p>\n<p>An aide for Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee, told CyberScoop that the incident is something the committee is \u201cfollowing closely, and I expect there to be briefings scheduled once Congress returns.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The Federal Communications Commission has also reportedly requested a briefing from national security officials on the hack, according to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nextgov.com\/cybersecurity\/2024\/10\/its-time-rethink-how-wiretaps-work-after-chinese-hack-experts-say\/400220\/?oref=ng-homepage-river\">Nextgov<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>For some, the potential penetration of private IT infrastructure used to process lawful wiretaps revived longstanding arguments around the potential collateral damage that can come with government surveillance.<\/p>\n<div class=\"ad ad--inline_1 \">\n<div class=\"ad__inner\"> <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Advertisement<\/span> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., a longtime critic of federal surveillance programs who sits on the Senate Intelligence Committee, told CyberScoop in a statement that the alleged hacks call into question the government\u2019s efforts to persuade \u2014 and in some cases compel \u2014 private companies to build specific channels for law enforcement access.<\/p>\n<p>Wyden and others have repeatedly warned that technical pathways built into private products that make it easier for law enforcement to access data can also be used by malicious actors, something the Salt Typhoon hack demonstrates. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cA compromise of networks associated with government surveillance would constitute both a serious threat to national security and a violation of the implicit social contract that comes with that surveillance,\u201d Wyden said. \u201cIf the government wants to listen in on Americans\u2019 calls and read their texts, its surveillance system must be secure against hacks. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cThese reports,\u201d he continued, \u201cif accurate, cast doubt on the integrity of that compact and raise further questions about government assertions that it can be trusted with expanded surveillance authorities that include weakening of Americans\u2019 encryption.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><em>Tim Starks contributed to this story. <\/em><\/p>\n<div class=\"ad ad--inline_1 \">\n<div class=\"ad__inner\"> <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Advertisement<\/span> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/body> <\/p>\n<footer class=\"single-article__footer\" readability=\"3.3469387755102\">\n<div class=\"author-card\" readability=\"13\">\n<div class=\"author-card__avatar\">\n<figure class=\"author-card__image-wrap\"> <img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"author-card__image\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/lawmakers-press-agencies-telecoms-for-more-details-on-salt-typhoon-hacks-1.jpg?w=640&ssl=1\" alt=\"Derek B. Johnson\"> <\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><h4 class=\"author-card__name\">Written by Derek B. Johnson<\/h4>\n<p> Derek B. Johnson is a reporter at CyberScoop, where his beat includes cybersecurity, elections and the federal government. Prior to that, he has provided award-winning coverage of cybersecurity news across the public and private sectors for various publications since 2017. Derek has a bachelor\u2019s degree in print journalism from Hofstra University in New York and a master\u2019s degree in public policy from George Mason University in Virginia. <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"single-article__tags-container\">\n<h4 class=\"single-article__tags-title\">In This Story<\/h4>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/footer>\n<p> <\/html><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"single-article__ads js-single-article-sidebar\">\n<div class=\"ad ad--sidebar js-single-article-sidebar-5 ad--rightrail_1 \">\n<div class=\"ad__inner\"> <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Advertisement<\/span> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"ad ad--sidebar js-single-article-sidebar-4 ad--rightrail_2 \">\n<div class=\"ad__inner\"> <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Advertisement<\/span> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"ad ad--sidebar js-single-article-sidebar-3 ad--rightrail_3 \">\n<div class=\"ad__inner\"> <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Advertisement<\/span> 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{"id":5741,"date":"2024-10-11T13:05:36","date_gmt":"2024-10-11T18:05:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/?p=82113"},"modified":"2024-10-11T13:05:36","modified_gmt":"2024-10-11T18:05:36","slug":"lawmakers-press-agencies-telecoms-for-more-details-on-salt-typhoon-hacks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/index.php\/2024\/10\/11\/lawmakers-press-agencies-telecoms-for-more-details-on-salt-typhoon-hacks\/","title":{"rendered":"Lawmakers press agencies, telecoms for more details on Salt Typhoon hacks"},"content":{"rendered":"