Why telecoms may never purge their networks of Salt Typhoon

When the news broke that a Chinese hacking group known as Salt Typhoon had penetrated multiple U.S. telecommunications networks, gained access to the phones of a presidential campaign, and collected geolocation data on high-value targets around Washington D.C., one of the first questions on the minds of executives and U.S. officials was how long it would take to kick them out.

The spying campaign shocked the government and telecom industry alike. While cyber-enabled espionage between world powers is broadly considered fair play, Salt Typhoon’s brazenness and the methodical, systematic way of compromising networks and collecting high-value intelligence reflected a deep understanding of how U.S. telecommunications networks operate.

Salt Typhoon’s widespread intrusions for a U.S. adversary endangered the cellular communications of nearly all Americans — including high-level government officials — and posed a severe threat to U.S. national security. Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., a former telecommunications executive, has called it “the most serious telecom hack in our nation’s history.”

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