A recent federal investigation has uncovered a significant cyberespionage campaign orchestrated by the Chinese government aimed at stealing information from Americans involved in government and politics. The FBI disclosed that hackers linked to Beijing have infiltrated multiple telecommunications companies to access customer call records and intercept private communications of a select group of individuals.
While the FBI did not disclose the identities of the targeted individuals, it noted that most of them are actively engaged in government or political activities. The hackers also attempted to access information subject to U.S. law enforcement requests, potentially targeting programs like those governed by the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA).
This revelation follows a series of high-profile hacking incidents attributed to China, with a focus on stealing technological and government data and compromising critical infrastructure such as the electrical grid. In a separate incident in September, the FBI disrupted a large-scale Chinese hacking operation, Flax Typhoon, which involved infecting over 200,000 consumer devices to create a botnet for cybercriminal activities.
More recently, Chinese hackers allegedly targeted the phones of prominent political figures, including then-presidential candidate Donald Trump, his running mate, and individuals associated with Vice President Kamala Harris. The FBI and Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) are collaborating with the telecommunications industry and hacking victims to enhance cybersecurity defenses against ongoing cyberespionage attempts.
Despite U.S. allegations, China has denied engaging in cyberespionage activities against Americans. The FBI and CISA emphasized that their investigation is ongoing, and they anticipate uncovering more details about these cyber compromises as it progresses.
