A Likely Chinese Hacker Crew Targeted 10 Phone Carriers to Steal Metadata

On June 24, researchers at Boston-based cybersecurity firm Cybereason revealed the results of tracking a years-long cyberespionage campaign they've called Operation Soft Cell, which they say targeted the networks of at least 10 cellular providers around the world. And while researchers' visibility into that hacking campaign is incomplete, they say it appears to be a prolific but highly targeted espionage campaign likely based in China. In one of the 10 breaches that affected a Cybereason customer, the researchers say they found that the hackers had gained deep access to the victim's network and stolen gigabytes of metadata related to 20 specific individuals' phone usage and location. "I wouldn’t be surprised to learn that a Chinese actor has targeted 10 telecom providers," says John Hultquist, who leads threat intelligence at security firm FireEye. "They're moving toward the backbone, hitting providers with access to a lot of data instead of going after targets in onesies and twosies. They gain a higher level of access and limit their exposure."