WASHINGTON – A sophisticated breach of US telecommunications systems has extended to the presidential campaigns, raising questions about the group behind the attack and the extent of its efforts at collecting intelligence.

It was unclear what data was taken in the attack. The far-reaching operation has been linked to the Chinese government and attributed to a group experts call Salt Typhoon.

Investigators believe hackers took aim at a host of well-connected Americans, including the presidential candidates – reflecting the scope and potential severity of the hack.

Here’s what to know.

What is Salt Typhoon?

Salt Typhoon is the name Microsoft cybersecurity experts have given to a Chinese group suspected of using sophisticated techniques to hack into major systems – most recently, US telecommunication companies.

The moniker is based on Microsoft’s practice of naming hacking groups after types of weather – “typhoon” for hackers based in China, “sandstorm” for efforts by Iran and “blizzard” for operations mounted by Russia. A second term, in this case “salt,” is used to denote the type of hacking.

Experts say Salt Typhoon seems to be focused primarily on counterintelligence targets, unlike other hacking groups that may try to steal corporate data, money or other secrets.

What do US officials think Salt Typhoon has done?

National security officials have gathered evidence indicating the hackers were able to infiltrate major telecom companies, including but not limited to Verizon.

The New York Times reported on Oct 25 that among the phones targeted were devices used by former President Donald Trump and his running mate, Senator JD Vance of Ohio. The effort is believed to be part of a wide-ranging intelligence-collection effort that also took aim at Democrats, including staff members of both Vice President Kamala Harris’ campaign and Senator Chuck Schumer of New York, the majority leader.

How serious is this hacking?

National security officials are still scrambling to understand the severity of the breach, but they are greatly concerned if, as it appears, hackers linked to Chinese intelligence were able to access US cellphone and data networks. Such information can provide a wealth of useful intelligence to a foreign adversary like China.

To some degree, the breach represents a continuation of data collection on the types of targets that spies have been gathering for decades. In this instance, however, the sheer quantity and quality of the information Salt Typhoon may have gained access to could put the intrusion into its own category, and suggests that US data networks are more vulnerable than officials realised.

What did the hackers get?

At this stage, that is still unclear. One major concern among government officials is whether the group was able to observe any court-ordered investigative work, such as Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act collection – a highly secretive part of American efforts to root out spies and terrorists.

No one has suggested yet that the hackers were able to essentially operate inside individual targets’ phones. The more immediate concern would be if they were able to see who was in contact with candidates and elected officials, and how often they spoke and for how long. That kind of information could help any intelligence agency understand who is close to senior decision-makers in the government.

People familiar with the investigation say it is not yet known if the hackers were able to gain access to that kind of information; investigators are reasonably confident that the perpetrators were focused on specific phone numbers associated with presidential campaigns, senior government leaders, their staff members and others.

Like the weather, hacking is never really over, and the Salt Typhoon breach may not be over either. It is also possible that the United States may never learn precisely what the hackers got. NYTIMES

WASHINGTON – The mastermind behind one of the biggest-ever Bitcoin heists was ordered to serve five years in prison for conspiring with his social-media rapper wife to launder money he stole by hacking into the Bitfinex exchange and grabbing cryptoassets now worth billions of dollars.

Ilya “Dutch” Lichtenstein was sentenced in Washington on Nov 14, after he and his wife, Heather Morgan, pleaded guilty last year in a scheme to hide proceeds from the 2016 hack. Morgan, known as “Razzlekhan” in her rap videos, will be sentenced Nov 18. The government recommended an 18-month sentence for her.  

Lichtenstein, 37, faced as long as 20 years behind bars. But the government cited his substantial assistance that “has benefited numerous investigations.” The Bitfinex hack resulted in the theft of 119,754 Bitcoin worth about US$71 million (S$23 million) at the time. But since then, the token has surged from US$580 in 2016 to more than US$90,000 this week, boosting the value of the assets to billions. 

“This is so massive, it is not comparable to other crypto crimes” based on its scale and complexity, US District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly said before sentencing. Lichtenstein carried out his scheme over several years, which undermines defense claims that his actions were “impulsive,” the judge said.  

Lichtenstein, a “highly skilled computer expert,” used several hacking techniques to gain access to the Bitfinex network, and then, in August 2016, fraudulently authorised more than 2,000 transactions to move Bitcoin to a cryptocurrency wallet he controlled, the government said. 

He and his wife used sophisticated and meticulous money-laundering techniques to hide the stolen proceeds, including setting up accounts under fictitious identities, moving funds in small amounts, and breaking up the trail of transactions by depositing and withdrawing funds from crypto exchanges and darknet markets. They bought nonfungible tokens, gold and Walmart gift cards, according to the government. 

Lichtenstein “became one of the greatest money launderers that the government has encountered in the cryptocurrency space,” prosecutors wrote in an October sentencing memo. “If the defendant were to take what he has learned from this prosecution and incorporate it into a future money laundering scheme, he would be even better-equipped to conceal his activity while monetizing his crimes,” they wrote. 

Since his plea last year, Lichtenstein has assisted the government in other criminal cases, including as a government witness in a money-laundering trial involving a mixing service called Bitcoin Fog. 

Other hacks

While Lichtenstein had no official criminal history before his arrest in 2022, the Bitfinex hack wasn’t his first, the government said. As a juvenile, he experimented with hacking and financial fraud, and around 2015, he illegally transferred a small amount of PayCoin, an alternative form of virtual currency, prosecutors said. The following year, he stole about US$200,000 from a virtual currency exchange, the government said.

But he also worked in legitimate businesses. While in college, Lichtenstein ran a digital marketing agency from his dorm, and after graduation, a software company he co-founded grew to 30 employees, the government said. 

“His decision to use his skills for criminal ends is thus particularly disappointing, but it gives hope for continued successful rehabilitation,” prosecutors said in the sentencing memo. 

Morgan attended her husband’s sentencing, along with Lichtenstein’s family. Lichtenstein expressed remorse to the judge and pledged that he would use his skills to help with cybersecurity. “I can make a real difference in the fight against cybercrime,” he said. 

He asked that his wife avoid prison time. “Heather is only involved in this case because of me,” he said. BLOOMBERG

WASHINGTON – A U.S. Senate Judiciary subcommittee overseeing technology issues will hold a hearing Tuesday on Chinese hacking incidents, including a recent incident involving American telecom companies.

The hearing to be chaired by Senator Richard Blumenthal will review the threats “Chinese hacking and influence pose to our democracy, national security, and economy,” his office said, adding the senator plans “to raise concerns about Elon Musk’s potential conflicts of interest with China as Mr. Musk becomes increasingly involved in government affairs.”

Musk, the head of electric car company Tesla, social media platform X and rocket company SpaceX, emerged during the election campaign as a major supporter of U.S. President-elect Donald Trump. Trump appointed him as co-head of a newly created Department of Government Efficiency to “slash excess regulations, cut wasteful expenditures, and restructure Federal Agencies.”

Musk, who was in China in April and reportedly proposed testing Tesla’s advanced driver-assistance package in China by deploying it in robotaxis, did not immediately to requests for comment.

The hearing will include CrowdStrike Senior Vice President Adam Meyers and Telecommunications Industry Association CEO David Stehlin, Strategy Risks CEO Isaac Stone Fish and Sam Bresnick, research fellow at the Center for Security and Emerging Technology at Georgetown University,

Last week, U.S. authorities said China-linked hackers have intercepted surveillance data intended for American law enforcement agencies after breaking in to an unspecified number of telecom companies, U.S. authorities said on Wednesday.

The hackers compromised the networks of “multiple telecommunications companies” and stole U.S. customer call records and communications from “a limited number of individuals who are primarily involved in government or political activity,” according to a joint statement released by the FBI and the U.S. cyber watchdog agency CISA.

The announcement confirmed the broad outlines of previous media reports that Chinese hackers were believed to have opened a back door into the interception systems used by law enforcement to surveil Americans’ telecommunications.

It follows reports Chinese hackers targeted telephones belonging to then-presidential and vice presidential candidates Donald Trump and JD Vance, along with other senior political figures, raised widespread concern over the security of U.S. telecommunications infrastructure.

Beijing has repeatedly denied claims by the U.S. government and others that it has used hackers to break into foreign computer systems.

Last month, a bipartisan group of U.S. lawmakers asked AT&T, Verizon Communications and Lumen Technologies to answer questions about the reporting hacking of the networks of U.S. broadband providers. REUTERS