- Salt Typhoon allegedly compromised emails of members of the House Committee on China, Foreign Affairs and Defense
- The extent of the intrusion remains unclear; The FBI and White House have not commented publicly
- The group is part of the Chinese “Typhoon” network, known for its telecommunications flaws
Salt Typhoon, the infamous Chinese state-sponsored threat actor best known for its incursions into Western telecommunications companies, has been discovered once again snooping on Western communications.
This time, they were allegedly seen in compromising emails used by staffers of “powerful committees of the United States House of Representatives.” Earlier this week, the Financial Times reported on the findings, citing people familiar with the matter and saying the attackers had accessed email systems used by some members of the House of Representatives China Committee.
Additionally, contributors to panels covering foreign affairs, intelligence and the armed forces were also targeted. The specific names, however, have not been released.
Who is Salt Typhoon?
What also remains unclear is the scale of the incident and the depth to which the attackers managed to penetrate the systems. Apparently, it is not clear whether the attackers accessed the emails of elected officials or just staff members.
The FBI and White House have yet to comment on the reports, while Chinese embassy spokesperson Liu Pengyu called them “unfounded speculation and accusations.”
Salt Typhoon is a Chinese state-sponsored threat actor and part of a broader network of “Typhoon” groups, including Brass Typhoon, Volt Typhoon, and Flax Typhoon. These groups are responsible for cyber incursions that align with Chinese state interests: cyber espionage, data theft, and persistent access to critical infrastructure.
In October last year, cybersecurity researchers Darktrace said they saw Salt Typhoon targeting communications networks in Europe and, before that, breached at least eight US telecommunications companies, including T-Mobile, Verizon, AT&T and Lumen Technologies. Officials said Salt Typhoon victims are found in dozens of countries around the world, typically using stealth techniques such as DLL sideloading and zero-day exploits.
Every time similar news breaks, the Chinese vehemently deny all allegations and instead point the finger at the United States, describing it as the world’s biggest cyber bully.
Via Financial Times
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