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What You Need to Know about the Salt Typhoon Cyberattack

Building future cyber trust and resilient networks throughout the country requires an understanding of past cyber risks and how to address them. Understanding what happened with large attacks like Salt Typhoon can help governments and businesses proactively approach cybersecurity to mitigate future hack risks.

What Is Salt Typhoon?

In late 2024, a cyberattack now known as Salt Typhoon hit telecommunications providers in the United States. The attack was carried out by Chinese hackers, and it may have begun as early as 2022 or 2023.

According to U.S. government officials, the goal of the Salt Typhoon attack was to compromise a wide variety of telecommunications devices, thus providing access to networks for Chinese operatives. The hack impacted major telecommunications networks, including those of Verizon, T-Mobile, and AT&T.

How Did This Cyberattack Work, and What Effects Did It Have?

The Salt Typhoon cyberattack was highly sophisticated, which is why it continued for so long without detection. Hackers leveraged a kernel-mode rootkit to access operating systems on target machines. This gave them remote control over critical functions and allowed them to infiltrate entire networks to access data. Further, the hackers used advanced evasion techniques, such as anti-forensics, to make it harder for the cyberattack to be detected and stopped.

The scope of the attack was not limited to the United States; it impacted telecommunications providers in dozens of countries. Throughout the almost 2-year time span of the attack, hackers maintained their presence in the impacted networks.

During the cyberattack, the following data may have been compromised:

In the United States, the attack was heavily focused in and around Washington, D.C., affecting prominent government officials, politicians, and government agencies. The hackers may have gained information specific to U.S. counterintelligence efforts, such as the names of known Chinese spies and informants. This type of data breach can negatively impact national security concerns and help Chinese spies evade surveillance efforts.

What Needs to Be Done to Prevent This Kind of Cyberattack in the Future?

The Salt Typhoon hackers primarily exploited vulnerabilities inherent in telecommunications networks. Shoring up those weaknesses and ensuring networks, businesses, and government agencies follow cybersecurity best practices is essential to reducing the success of such attacks in the future.

Some specific steps that might help prevent this kind of attack include:

The Salt Typhoon cyberattack is a stark reminder of the importance of robust cybersecurity measures and international cooperation. By learning from past incidents and proactively addressing vulnerabilities, government agencies and private-sector businesses can build stronger, more resilient networks. Implementing best practices, enhancing monitoring systems, and fostering collaboration between sectors and even nations are critical steps in preventing future attacks and ensuring a safer digital landscape.

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