An allegedly Chinese state-sponsored hacker campaign dubbed “Salt Typhoon” has infiltrated major cell phone providers, including AT&T and Verizon, potentially exposing your company’s communications to threat actors.
The attack has been described as the most significant telecommunications hack in U.S. history. While the breach is alarming for individuals, the implications for businesses are profound and demand immediate attention.
What is Salt Typhoon?
Salt Typhoon is a sophisticated cyber-espionage operation allegedly orchestrated by the Chinese government. The campaign has targeted vulnerabilities in telecom providers’ infrastructure to access text messages, monitor communications and extract sensitive metadata.
The ongoing breach has affected at least eight major U.S. telecom companies and poses a severe threat to national security and corporate privacy.
Potential dangers to businesses
- Exposure of sensitive information
Text messages often contain business-critical details, such as contracts, client discussions, or even login credentials. If these communications are intercepted, companies risk financial loss, reputational damage and legal consequences.
- Corporate espionageCompetitors or foreign entities gaining access to a company’s internal strategies could result in lost market advantages or intellectual property theft.
- Regulatory and legal repercussionsMany industries are subject to strict data protection laws. A breach exposing customer or employee information could lead to fines and legal actions under regulations such as GDPR or CCPA.
- Erosion of trustBusiness partners and clients may lose confidence in a company’s ability to safeguard information, leading to strained relationships and loss of business opportunities.
Government warning
In response to the Salt Typhoon campaign, the U.S. government issued strong recommendations for using end-to-end encrypted communication platforms.
Unlike standard text messaging or phone calls, end-to-end encryption ensures that only the sender and recipient can read the messages, preventing interception even if a network is compromised.
Apps like WhatsApp and Signal, and corporate platforms such as Microsoft eams and Zoom with encryption features have been singled out as secure alternatives. In contrast, traditional SMS and non-encrypted messaging services remain vulnerable.
For businesses, adopting these recommendations is a necessity. The FBI and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency have emphasized that sensitive communications must migrate to encrypted platforms to mitigate risks from ongoing cyber threats.
Protecting your firm
Protecting your business from the fallout of attacks like Salt Typhoon requires a multi-layered approach. Here are some critical steps:
- Use encrypted messaging: In light of the official recommendations above, shift all internal and external communications to end-to-end encrypted platforms such as Signal or WhatsApp, or enterprise solutions with encryption features.
- Eliminate SMS-based authentication: Avoid using text-based, one-time passwords for authentication; instead, deploy hardware security keys or app-based authenticators.
- Update systems regularly: Ensure all devices and software are updated to patch known vulnerabilities.
- Train employees: Conduct regular cyber-security training to educate employees about phishing, secure communications and device management.
- Limit data access: Implement least-privilege access controls to restrict sensitive data to only those who need it.
- Conduct security audits: Regularly audit your infrastructure for vulnerabilities. Engage third party experts to perform penetration tests and simulate attacks to identify and address weak points.
Finally, you should have in place a robust cyber-insurance policy, which can help mitigate the financial impact of a breach. A comprehensive policy should cover:
- Forensic investigations
- System remediation and restoration
- Legal and regulatory compliance
- Business interruption losses.