FBI & CISA: Use Encrypted Messaging Platforms
In the wake of China's hack of US telecoms, already dubbed the worst in history, FBI and CISA officials are warning users to rely on encrypted messaging platforms....
In the wake of China’s hack of US telecoms, already dubbed the worst in history, FBI and CISA officials are warning users to rely on encrypted messaging platforms.
China perpetrated the “worst telecom hack” in US history, an operation carried about by a group called Salt Typhoon. The group hacked some of the nation’s biggest providers, including both Verizon and AT&T, to surveill persons of interest. To date, much of the surveillance has been centered around the D.C. area, but there’s no limit to who the group could surveil, among the impacted telecom customers. While security experts and law enforcement have been working to oust Salt Typhoon from the telecoms, the efforts have had mixed success.
According to NBC News, an unnamed senior FBI official and Jeff Greene, an executive assistant director for cybersecurity at CISA, is warning that consumers should rely on encrypted communication methods to ensure China cannot listen in on conversations or read texts.
“Our suggestion, what we have told folks internally, is not new here: Encryption is your friend, whether it’s on text messaging or if you have the capacity to use encrypted voice communication. Even if the adversary is able to intercept the data, if it is encrypted, it will make it impossible,” Greene said. |Read more|
Is Signal private? Can I trust it?
Signal conversations are always end-to-end encrypted, which means that they can only be read or heard by your intended recipients. Privacy isn’t an optional mode — it’s just the way that Signal works. Every message, every call, every time. You can confirm that the server is operating correctly and that you are communicating with the right person using safety numbers.
The complete source code for the Signal clients and the Signal server is available on GitHub. This enables interested parties to examine the code for security and correctness. If privacy and security are important to you, get Signal for messaging, calls, video calls and groups.
Update Dec 7, 2024
A huge hack of U.S. phone companies means your text messages may not be safe
Canadians should consider encrypted messaging services to protect themselves, cybersecurity experts say
At least eight U.S. telecom firms and dozens of countries have been impacted this week by what a top White House official called a Chinese hacking campaign that has also raised concerns about the security of text messaging.
At a media briefing Wednesday, U.S. Deputy National Security Adviser Anne Neuberger shared details about the breadth of a sprawling hacking campaign that gave officials in Beijing access to private texts and phone conversations of an unknown number of Americans.
A group of hackers known as Salt Typhoon are being blamed for the attack targeting companies, which reportedly included AT&T, Verizon and Lumen Technologies. White House officials cautioned the number of telecommunication firms and countries impacted could still grow.
Canadian cybersecurity experts paying close attention to this latest breach say some industry practices and government regulations that allow intelligence organizations access to the telecommunications system are part of the problem. These experts and U.S. law enforcement officials are recommending that people take action to protect their text messages. |Read more|
