FBI confirms its networks were targeted by “suspicious” cyber activities

The FBI on Thursday confirmed its networks were targeted by “suspicious” activities, without providing further details.

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

The networks that were targeted in the cyber incident are known as the “digital collection system,” according to sources with knowledge of the matter.

Documents obtained by a Freedom of Information Act by the Electronic Frontier Foundation decades ago described the FBI’s “Digital Collection Systems Network” as a suite of software that is used by the bureau to conduct a wide range of surveillance activities, from wiretaps to pen registers, which are surveillance tools that record phone numbers, IP addresses, signaling and other information, in real time. 

CBS News could not ascertain additional details, including when the incident occurred, who was behind it or whether any information was compromised.

In 2024, state-sponsored hackers from China known as “Salt Typhoon” launched cyber assaults against commercial telecommunications companies. 

The group hit numerous major U.S. companies, including Verizon, AT&T, and Lumen Technologies, and that they also breached systems used by U.S. intelligence to conduct wiretaps, CBS News previously reported.

That same group was also responsible for trying to tap into phones or networks used by then-former President Donald Trump, Sen. JD Vance and members of former Vice President Kamala Harris’ presidential campaign, CBS reported at the time.