Springfield Standard

Senators Eric Schmitt and Ron Wyden have called for an investigation into the Defense Department's security measures following a significant cyberattack known as the "Salt Typhoon." The hack, attributed to Chinese government hackers, targeted major telecom companies. The senators expressed concern over the Pentagon's lack of secure communication protocols.

"DOD’s failure to secure its unclassified voice, video, and text communications with end-to-end encryption technology has left it needlessly vulnerable to foreign espionage," stated Wyden and Schmitt. They urged an investigation into DOD’s failure to secure its communications and recommended policy changes.

The letter addressed to Department of Defense Inspector General Robert Storch emphasized security shortcomings in the DOD’s Spiral 4 telecommunications contract. This year, a contract valued at up to $2.7 billion was signed for wireless services for DOD personnel without adequate cybersecurity validation from third-party audits.

Recently, federal authorities confirmed that Chinese hackers breached multiple telecommunications companies. The targets included high-profile figures such as President-elect Trump, Vice President-elect Vance, and Senate Majority Leader Schumer.

The senators pointed out several issues:

- The DOD has requested independent cybersecurity audits from phone carriers but has been unable to review them.

- The department has not mandated the sharing of these audits nor conducted its own evaluations.

- There is uncertainty about whether the DOD can conduct its own cybersecurity audits on carriers serving the Pentagon.

- There is an urgent need for default end-to-end encryption practices for unclassified communications.

A full copy of their letter can be accessed online.