China allegedly used telecommunications networks in the Caribbean to spy on Americans traveling abroad, according to a network security expert’s findings reported by the Guardian.
Using a state-controlled tech giant, Chinese officials allegedly conducted surveillance attacks to track and intercept communications of mobile phone users without their knowledge. China has engaged in the practice since at least 2018, targeting 3G and 4G phone users, a former telecommunications security executive told the Guardian.
The surveillance attacks largely occurred in countries such as Barbados and the Bahamas, affecting potentially tens of thousands of users, including U.S. citizens abroad.
The majority of the attacks on mobile phones were routed through the state-owned telecommunications company China Unicom, according to the security expert. Simultaneous surveillance intrusions were traced to Caribbean-based companies, though the expert suggested they may not have knowingly participated in malicious data theft but simply leased a network address to a Chinese entity carrying out surveillance.
In April, Federal Communications Commission chairman Ajit Pai declared China Unicom vulnerable to control from the CCP.- READ MORE
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