More US companies affected by Chinese hack in 2023: WSJ

Washington. A break-in of computer systems from China in 2023 affected more US telecommunications companies than previously known, including Charter Communications, Consolidated Communications and Windstream, reported The Wall Street Journal, citing people familiar with the matter.

The hackers also took advantage of unpatched network devices from security vendor Fortinet and compromised large network routers from Cisco Systems, the American newspaper noted.

China denied taking part in such actions and accused the United States of misinforming.

According to a report, US national security advisor Jake Sullivan told telecommunications and technology executives in a secret meeting at the White House in the fall of 2023 that hackers Chinese hackers had acquired the ability to shut down dozens of American ports, power grids, and other infrastructure targets at will.

The operation Salt Typhoon It targeted ATT and Verizon systems, according to news reports.

Officials related to the presidential campaigns of Democrat Kamala Harris and Republican Donald Trump were also targeted.

Verizon told the newspaper that a small number of high-profile customers in government and politics were specifically targeted by threatening acts and that those people had been notified.

Wireless carriers are now safe as they collaborate with law enforcement and authorities, the companies said last week in their first acknowledgment of the attacks.