Mandiant Founder Calls Chinese Wiretap Hack Unsurprising
Nextgov/FCW, Thursday, October 17th, 2024
Telecommunications providers have always been an ideal espionage target for foreign adversaries, Kevin Mandia said in an interview.
An alleged Chinese government-backed infiltration into U.S. wiretap infrastructure is leaving at least one cybersecurity leader unsurprised, arguing that telecommunications technology has always been prime real estate for hackers since its inception.
The Wall Street Journal on Oct. 5 reported that a Chinese state-backed hacking collective dubbed Salt Typhoon penetrated the networks of AT&T, Verizon and Lumen, and for months was possibly inside systems that handle court-authorized wiretap requests.
Kevin Mandia, a top voice in the cybersecurity community who founded the eponymously named firm Mandiant, said in an interview with Nextgov/FCW that telecoms are a logical target for adversaries in an espionage operation.