Telecommunications
Chinese hackers use custom malware to spy on US telecom networks
The Chinese state-sponsored Salt Typhoon hacking group uses a custom utility called JumbledPath to stealthily monitor network traffic and potentially capture sensitive data in cyberattacks on U.S. telecommunication providers. Salt Typhoon (aka Earth Estries, GhostEmperor, and UNC2286) is a sophisticated hacking group active since at least 2019, primarily focusing on breaching government entities and telecommunications companies. […]
Chinese hackers breach more US telecoms via unpatched Cisco routers
China’s Salt Typhoon hackers are still actively targeting telecoms worldwide and have breached more U.S. telecommunications providers via unpatched Cisco IOS XE network devices. Recorded Future’s Insikt Group threat research division states that the Chinese hacking group (tracked Salt Typhoon and RedMike) has exploited the CVE-2023-20198 privilege escalation and CVE-2023-20273 Web UI command injection vulnerabilities. These ongoing attacks have […]
TalkTalk investigates breach after data for sale on hacking forum
UK telecommunications company TalkTalk is investigating a third-party supplier data breach after a threat actor began selling alleged customer data on a hacking forum. “As part of our regular security monitoring, given our ongoing focus on protecting customers’ personal data, we were made aware of unexpected access to, and misuse of, one of our third-party […]
FCC orders telecoms to secure their networks after Salt Tyhpoon hacks
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has ordered U.S. telecommunications carriers to secure their networks following last year’s Salt Typhoon security breaches. Today’s action comes after FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel said in early December that the FCC would act “urgently” to require U.S. carriers to secure their systems from cyberattacks. “We now have a choice to make. We […]
Telefónica confirms internal ticketing system breach after data leak
Spanish telecommunications company Telefónica confirms an internal ticketing system was breached after stolen data was leaked on a hacking forum. Telefónica is a Spanish multinational telecommunications company operating in twelve countries with over 104,000 employees. The company is the largest telecommunications firm in Spain, operating under the name Movistar. In an email to GeekFeed today, […]
Chinese hackers also breached Charter and Windstream networks
More U.S. companies have been added to the list of telecommunications firms hacked in a wave of breaches by a Chinese state-backed threat group tracked as Salt Typhoon. This comes after AT&T, Verizon, and Lumen confirmed on December 30 that they have evicted the hackers from their networks. After breaching their networks, the Salt Typhoon hackers gained access […]
White House links ninth telecom breach to Chinese hackers
A White House official has added a ninth U.S. telecommunications company to the list of telecoms breached in a Chinese hacking campaign that impacted dozens of countries. The Salt Typhoon Chinese cyber-espionage group who orchestrated these attacks (also tracked as Earth Estries, FamousSparrow, Ghost Emperor, and UNC2286) is known for breaching government entities and telecom companies […]
CISA urges switch to Signal-like encrypted messaging apps after telecom hacks
Today, CISA urged senior government and political officials to switch to end-to-end encrypted messaging apps like Signal following a wave of telecom breaches across dozens of countries, including eight carriers in the United States. CISA and the FBI confirmed these breaches in late October after reports that the Salt Typhoon, a Chinese-backed threat group, had hacked multiple U.S. […]
White House: Salt Typhoon hacked telcos in dozens of countries
Chinese state hackers, known as Salt Typhoon, have breached telecommunications companies in dozens of countries, President Biden’s deputy national security adviser Anne Neuberger said today. During a Wednesday press briefing, the White House official told reporters that these breaches include a total of eight telecom firms in the United States, with only four previously known. […]
T-Mobile confirms it was hacked in recent wave of telecom breaches
T-Mobile confirms it was hacked in the wave of recently reported telecom breaches conducted by Chinese threat actors to gain access to private communications, call records, and law enforcement information requests. “T-Mobile is closely monitoring this industry-wide attack, and at this time, T-Mobile systems and data have not been impacted in any significant way, and we […]