Hackers breached T-Mobile router

This month, the Chinese hacking gang, Salt Typhoon, had succeeded in penetrating eavesdropping systems operated by companies including T-Mobile, AT&T, Verizon, and Lumen Technologies.

Their goal was to reveal which conversations American telecommunications companies were recording on behalf of the US government. On November 17, T-Mobile said it had no evidence of an attack on its wiretapping system.

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This morning, Bloomberg reported that T-Mobile engineers detected suspicious activity on devices on its network, suggesting the company had been attacked. Jeff Simon, T-Mobile's chief security officer, said that while the actions were not "inherently malicious," they were unusual enough to prompt further investigation by network engineers.

Some of this activity involved unauthorized users executing commands on devices on the network. T-Mobile engineers assumed that the hackers were probing the network structure. Before they could penetrate deeper or gain access to customer data, T-Mobile was able to fend off the hackers. U.S. officials accused the hackers, who are believed to be funded by the Chinese government, of waging a campaign against U.S. telecommunications companies, including some of T-Mobile’s competitors.

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For months, Chinese hackers have had access to information about people under legal surveillance in the United States. The hacking operation may have helped expose U.S. plans to track down foreign agents, according to two sources. The hackers also had the ability to monitor communications involving a “limited number” of people in government and politics, including President-elect Donald Trump, Vice President-elect JD Vance and members of Vice President Kamala Harris’s staff.

Because T-Mobile is the only carrier in the US with a standalone 5G network, it believes it was less vulnerable to the hacking group's attack. This network bypasses older networking equipment used during the 2G, 3G and 4G eras, such as copper networks and cables. Standalone 5G networks use advanced encryption and privacy technologies and are equipped with newer technological equipment.

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T-Mobile said the breach came from a non-wireless company’s wireline that was connected to its network. Simon said the industry has been sharing more information recently to address Salt Typhoon. One of T-Mobile’s competitors is Verizon ,the nation’s largest carrier, and Simon said it has been a “great partner” in sharing information with the community.

Source: phonearena