FBI Investigates Breach That May Have Hit Its Wiretapping Tools

Source: Slashdot

Investigation Overview

The FBI is investigating a breach affecting systems tied to wiretapping and surveillance warrant data, after abnormal logs revealed possible unauthorized access to law‑enforcement‑sensitive information.

“The FBI identified and addressed suspicious activities on FBI networks, and we have leveraged all technical capabilities to respond,” a spokesperson for the bureau said. “We have nothing additional to provide.”

The Register notes that, while the FBI declined to provide further details, China’s Salt Typhoon previously compromised wiretapping systems used by law enforcement. Salt Typhoon is the PRC‑backed group that famously hacked major U.S. telecommunications firms and stole information belonging to nearly every American.

According to the Associated Press, the FBI notified Congress that it began investigating the breach on February 17 after spotting abnormal log information related to a system on its network. The notification stated:

“The affected system is unclassified and contains law‑enforcement sensitive information, including returns from legal process, such as pen register and trap and trace surveillance returns, and personally identifiable information pertaining to subjects of FBI investigations.”