SEA ISLAND, Ga.—The head of the National Security Agency said Sunday that China’s hacking of three major telecommunications companies is under investigation, but it is still “premature” to discuss the matter.
Air Force Gen. Timothy Ho said the command would work closely with other government agencies and private companies “to truly understand what happened.”
“I think it’s too early to talk about this specific case. We’re really in the early stages,” Ho told a small group of reporters at a conference hosted by security website Cipher Brief. .
“I think we’re in the early stages of an investigation,” he said of reports that Chinese hackers may have accessed systems used for wiretapping that federal authorities have admitted in court.
The Wall Street Journal first reported the hack on Saturday.
Chinese-backed hackers gained access to at least three telecommunications companies (AT&T, Verizon, and Lumen Technologies) and may have attempted to access information on systems used by the federal government for court-approved electronic surveillance. A source close to the matter revealed that there is a relationship between the two. Said.
Telecommunications companies have a legal obligation to give federal authorities access to electronic information if there is a court order for wiretapping. If China were to infiltrate the eavesdropping system, it would be a major security breach.
AT&T and Lumen declined to comment. Verizon did not immediately respond to a request for comment Sunday night.
China denies past allegations of hacking by Western governments.
A spokesperson for the Chinese embassy in Washington said in a statement that U.S. intelligence agencies and cybersecurity companies are spreading “disinformation” to obtain government funding and contracts. “We have always firmly opposed and fought all forms of cyber-hacking in accordance with the law,” the spokesperson said. “We call on all parties involved to immediately stop politicizing cybersecurity issues to smear China, and base their conclusions on evidence rather than baseless speculation and accusations.”
The FBI and the White House National Security Council declined to comment.
Ho said the NSA and other federal agencies issued an advisory in 2022 warning that Chinese government-backed cyber operators were attempting to hack major telecommunications companies and network service providers.
“What we broadly see from a PRC (People’s Republic of China) threat perspective is that China is very aggressive in its critical infrastructure collection activities and will target our critical infrastructure.” said Mr Ho.
In a speech ahead of the conference, Ho said Chinese cyber operatives “steal our technology and engage in deliberate operations every day to target our national security systems and defense industrial base.” said. He added that Chinese government-backed hackers are “aiming to compromise our nation’s critical infrastructure.”
