National security officials meet with US telecom execs to share intel on Chinese cyber espionage campaign, White House says

Top telecom executives met with US national security officials Friday as concerns mount over a long-running Chinese cyber-espionage campaign that has targeted some of the most senior US political figures in the country.

(CNN) — Top telecom executives met with US national security officials Friday as concerns mount over a long-running Chinese cyber-espionage campaign that has targeted some of the most senior US political figures in the country. The hackers burrowed deep into some major US telecom providers to spy on phone calls and text messages and have proved difficult to kick out of some networks, people briefed on the matter said. The meetings were a chance for telecom executives to advise the government on how it could boost its defenses against sophisticated hacks, according to the White House. The groups also shared intelligence on the operation with one another. The hack is shaping up to be one of the biggest cyber and national security challenges facing the incoming Trump administration. It is “by far” the “worst telecom hack in our nation’s history,” Sen. Mark Warner, Democrat of Virginia and chairman of the intelligence committee, told CNN. But the full scope of the hack, who it affects and its impact on national security are still being investigated.