Chinese hackers backed by the communist government have stepped up their attacks on U.S.-based internet service providers, including two that boast millions of customers, The Washington Post reported Tuesday.
The spying campaign has sparked concern given whom the hackers are targeting: military and government personnel as well as groups that have strategic interests in China, according to the Post.
"This is privileged, high-level connectivity to interesting customers," Mike Horka, a researcher at Lumen Technologies and a former FBI agent, told the Post.
Further, Horka told the Post that the hackers are exploiting previously undiscovered software flaws, an assertion confirmed by the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), an agency within the Department of Homeland Security, according to the report.
Lumen reported that three American ISPs were hacked this summer along with another U.S. company and one in India, according to the Post.
The hacking efforts have been linked to Volt Typhoon, a Chinese government-backed group, according to the report, a connection denied by the Chinese.
"'Volt Typhoon' is actually a ransomware cybercriminal group who calls itself the 'Dark Power' and is not sponsored by any state or region," Chinese embassy spokesman Liu Pengyu told the Post.