Salt Typhoon breach: Chinese APT compromises U.S. Army National Guard network
Vulnerabilities mentionedAll →
| CVE | Vulnerability | CVSS | EPSS | Flags | Affected | Exposure | Published |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVE-2023-20198 | Unauthenticated Privilege Escalation in Cisco IOS XE Web UI (Actively Exploited) CVE-2023-20198 is a critical (CVSS 10.0) unauthenticated privilege escalation flaw in the web UI of Cisco IOS XE software, triggered by sending crafted network requests to the exposed web management interface. An attacker with no credentials can use the flaw to gain initial access and issue a privilege 15 command, creating a local user with normal login access; the attacker then chained CVE-2023-20273 (CVSS 7.2) to elevate that account to root and write an implant to the file system. Successful exploitation yields full administrative control of the device, including persistence via the planted implant, on Cisco IOS XE devices with the web UI enabled and reachable from the internet or untrusted networks, including Rockwell Automation Allen-Bradley Stratix 5200 and 5800 switches running IOS XE. Exploitation is confirmed in the wild: the flaw was added to CISA's KEV on 2023-10-16 with a BOD 23-02 directive, EPSS stands at 99.6% (100th percentile), and ongoing campaigns (including the 'BADCANDY' activity flagged by Australia's ASD and Cisco-related telecom intrusions attributed to Salt Typhoon) have been reported. Do: Upgrade affected devices to the fixed releases listed in Cisco's advisory (use Cisco's Software Checker) and, as immediate mitigation, disable the web UI or restrict it to trusted networks/addresses only. Check for compromise by looking for unexpected local user accounts and the implant artifacts Cisco identified (unexpected cisco_tac_alarm.log and cisco_tac.log files in /tmp or /usr/binos/conf), and immediately report positive findings to CISA per BOD 23-02. Keep in mind that patching alone does not remove a root implant, so devices with evidence of compromise should be reimaged or otherwise cleaned per vendor instructions. | 10.0 | 100% | KEV |
| large≈40,000–50,000 internet-exposed IOS XE devices at the time of disclosure (public scan data), within an IOS XE install base in the millions | |
| CVE-2023-20273 | Authenticated Command Injection (Root) in Cisco IOS XE Web UI CVE-2023-20273 is an OS command injection flaw (CWE-78) in the web UI feature of Cisco IOS XE Software, caused by insufficient input validation. An authenticated, remote attacker triggers it by sending crafted input to the web UI, and a successful exploit injects commands that run on the underlying operating system with root privileges, yielding full device compromise (in the October 2023 mass-exploitation campaign it was typically chained with the unauthenticated CVE-2023-20198 to obtain initial access and install a persistent implant). Any Cisco IOS XE device with the web UI enabled and reachable from the internet or an untrusted network is affected; this data does not specify the affected release ranges, which are enumerated in Cisco's advisory. Exploitation is confirmed in the wild: CISA added the flaw to the KEV on 2023-10-23 with BOD 23-02 response actions, EPSS is ~90% (100th percentile), and IOS XE edge devices remain recurring targets of Chinese-nexus espionage campaigns (e.g., Salt Typhoon activity against telecoms). Do: Upgrade affected devices to a fixed IOS XE release per Cisco's advisory; as an interim mitigation, disable the HTTP/HTTPS server (ip http server / ip https server) or restrict Web UI access to trusted hosts only. Per BOD 23-02, hunt for compromise on any exposed device — check for unexpected level-15 local accounts and the implant.lua backdoor in flash memory — and immediately report positive findings to CISA. | 7.2 | 90% | KEV |
| mass≈100,000+ internet-exposed IOS XE devices (public scans observed ~40,000+ compromised within days of disclosure) |
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China-linked APT Salt Typhoon breached a U.S. Army National Guard unit’s network, accessed configs, and intercepted communications with other units.
A DoD report warns that China-nexus hacking group Salt Typhoon breached a U.S. state’s Army National Guard network from March to December 2024. The APT stole network configs, admin credentials, and data exchanged with units across all U.S. states and several territories. This info could help future hacks and weaken state-level defenses against Chinese cyberattacks during crises, posing serious risks to U.S. critical infrastructure.
“A recent compromise of a US state’s Army National Guard network by People’s Republic of China (PRC)-associated cyber actors—publicly tracked as Salt Typhoon—likely provided Beijing with data that could facilitate thehacking of other states’ Army National Guard units, and possibly many of their state-level cybersecurity partners. If thePRC-associated cyber actors that conducted the hack succeeded in the latter, it could hamstring state-level cybersecuritypartners’ ability to defend US critical infrastructure against PRC cyber campaigns in the event of a crisis or conflict.” reads a report first seen by NBC News.
The report includes details on the tactics, techniques and procedures (TTPS) used by Salt Typhoon, along with a guidance to help National Guard and state governments detect, prevent, and mitigate this threat.
“Between March and December 2024, Salt Typhoon extensively compromised a US state’s Army National Guard’s network and, among other things, collected its network configuration and its data traffic with its counterparts’ networks in every other US state and at least four US territories, according to a DOD report.” continues the report. “This data also included these networks’ administrator credentials and network diagrams—which could be used to facilitate follow-on Salt Typhoon hacks of these units”
Government’s report warns that Salt Typhoon’s breach of a state’s Army National Guard network poses a major threat to U.S. cyber defenses. The group stole admin credentials, network diagrams, and PII of service members, potentially impacting cybersecurity staff in multiple states. With Guard units integrated into fusion centers in 14 states, this access could expose critical infrastructure defenses and help guide future Chinese cyberattacks targeting state-level cyber personnel and operations.
The nation-state threat actor, tracked as Salt Typhoon, was previously accused of hacking US telecommunications giants AT&T and Verizon, along with Lumen Technologies and other service providers in the US and abroad, to compromise wiretap systems.
Last month, the Canadian Centre for Cyber Security and the FBI warned that the APT had also targeted telecom providers in Canada, stealing call records and private communications.
Since 2023, Chinese group Salt Typhoon has exploited various CVEs using rented IPs to mask activity. They stole over 1,400 config files from over 70 U.S. government and critical infrastructure entities across 12 sectors, including Energy and Water. These files included credentials, network diagrams, and admin data, enabling deeper intrusions. DOD and CISA urge strict SMB and credential protection, encryption, and least privilege access to defend against future breaches.
At the end of June, the Canadian Centre for Cyber Security and the FBI warned that China-linked APT cyber espionage group Salt Typhoon, is targeting Canadian telecom firms in espionage attacks.
The Salt Typhoon hacking campaign, active for 1–2 years, has targeted telecommunications providers in several dozen countries, according to a U.S. official.
In February 2025, Recorded Future’s Insikt Group reported that China-linked APT group Salt Typhoon was still targeting telecommunications providers worldwide, and the threat actors had breached more U.S. telecommunications providers by exploiting unpatched Cisco IOS XE network devices.
Insikt Group researchers reported that the Chinese hacked have exploited two Cisco flaws, tracked as CVE-2023-20198 and CVE-2023-20273.
Canada’s Cyber Centre reports that PRC-linked group Salt Typhoon likely hacked three telecom devices in February 2025, exploiting CVE-2023-20198 to steal configs and set up a GRE tunnel for data collection.
“The Cyber Centre is aware of malicious cyber activities currently targeting Canadian telecommunications companies. The responsible actors are almost certainly PRC state-sponsored actors, specifically Salt Typhoon.” reads the guidance published by the Canadian Centre for Cyber Security. “Three network devices registered to a Canadian telecommunications company were compromised by likely Salt Typhoon actors in mid-February 2025. The actors exploited CVE-2023-20198 to retrieve the running configuration files from all three devices and modified at least one of the files to configure a GRE tunnel, enabling traffic collection from the network.”
The Cyber Centre found that the China-nexus group is targeting more than telecoms, conducting network reconnaissance and possibly using compromised devices to reach more victims. This espionage activity is expected to continue over the next two years, with a focus on telecoms and their clients.
The government experts believe the nation-state actor is also targeting organizations that are in other sectors.
State-sponsored hackers, especially from China, are heavily targeting telecom providers for espionage. These networks hold valuable data like call logs, locations, and private communications. In 2024,
In early December 2024, President Biden’s deputy national security adviser Anne Neuberger said that China-linked APT group Salt Typhoon had breached telecommunications companies in dozens of countries.
The Wall Street Journal reported that the senior White House official revealed that at least eight U.S. telecommunications firms were compromised in the attack. The deputy national security adviser said China accessed extensive metadata from targeted Americans while seeking specific communications, focusing regionally on government and political figures.
China-linked APT Salt Typhoon has also reportedly targeted satellite firm Viasat.
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