CNN
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A group of hackers linked to the Chinese government is targeting phone communications between former President Donald Trump and vice presidential candidate J.D. Vance as part of a broader cyber espionage campaign aimed at high-level targets in the United States, the report said. Two sources familiar with the matter told CNN.
Another person familiar with the matter told CNN that Chinese hackers have also targeted people associated with the Harris-Waltz campaign. Biden administration officials were also targeted, one of the people said.
U.S. officials notified the Trump campaign this week that Trump and Vance were among a group of cellphones targeted by Chinese hackers, one of the people said. In a statement, Trump campaign spokesman Stephen Chan attacked the Harris campaign for emboldening China.
It was not immediately clear what data, if any, the hackers were able to access. Telephone conversations between current and former U.S. officials are coveted by foreign spies.
“The U.S. government is investigating unauthorized access to commercial telecommunications infrastructure by persons associated with the People’s Republic of China,” the FBI and the U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) said in a statement Friday.
After the FBI identified a hack targeting telecommunications companies, the FBI and CISA “immediately notified affected companies, provided technical assistance, and provided assistance to other potential victims.” information was promptly shared,” the statement continued, adding that the investigation is ongoing.
The New York Times first reported on the hack targeting Trump and Vance’s cell phones.
The operation is part of a broader Chinese hacking campaign that has compromised multiple U.S. telecommunications companies over the past few months. Investigators believe the hackers were likely looking for sensitive national security information, possibly including information about the Justice Department’s request for a wiretap warrant, CNN previously reported.
In this case, there is no evidence that the hackers searched for data on Mr. Trump and Mr. Vance related to U.S. law enforcement activity, the people said.
Major US broadband internet providers AT&T, Verizon, and Lumen have also been targeted by hackers, CNN reported.
People investigating the intrusion were shocked by the hackers’ skill, tenacity and ability to break into computer networks, people briefed on the matter told CNN. The Chinese hacking team in question is known in the cybersecurity industry as Salt Typhoon.
U.S. officials briefed members of the House and Senate intelligence committees on China’s hacking efforts.
“This is a very serious breach, and the committee monitors it on a daily basis,” Sen. Mark Warner, D-Virginia, who chairs the Intelligence Committee, told CNN earlier this month. .
The House Homeland Security Committee is also investigating the hacking incident.
“This is a very alarming cyber breach,” Tennessee Republican Rep. Mark Green, the committee’s chairman, told CNN in a separate interview this month. “Wide and deep”
The Chinese government denies the allegations.
The news comes as China, Iran and Russia continue to influence or monitor various aspects of the US election. Although China has not launched a concerted effort to influence the presidential election, it has conducted covert social media campaigns targeting at least 10 congressional, state and local races, according to U.S. intelligence agencies.
This story has been updated with additional reporting.
