Civics: U.S. spying on it’s citizens and China taking advantage of that backdoor for months before anyone realizing.
Why it matters: The intrusion could give Chinese intelligence access to court-authorized wiretap requests and vast amounts of internet traffic, undermining U.S. law enforcement and intelligence operations.
Key points:
- The attack targeted major U.S. broadband providers, including AT&T, Verizon, and Lumen Technologies (Source: WSJ)
- Hackers may have had access for months to systems used for lawful wiretapping requests
- The breach is considered “historically significant and worrisome” by U.S. officials
