- Satellite communications giant Viasat was also targeted by Salt Typhoon
- The company found unauthorized access via a compromised device
- Breadth of attacks highlights Salt Typhoon’s threat to US comms
Another victim of the massive Salt Typhoon cyberattack which targeted US telecommunications giants has been identified as Viasat.
Bloomberg News reports the company found a breach in its systems earlier in 2025 linked to the wider attacks against US communications infrastructure, as the satellite communications company was working with the country’s government.
Viasat has numerous contracts and partnerships across the maritime, aviation, and networking industries, alongside several contracts with the US Department of Defense and US Space Force.
Satellite comms targeted by Salt Typhoon
The attack in 2024 saw the Chinese-linked Salt Typhoon group hack into numerous networks belonging to telecommunications companies such as Verizon, AT&T, and Lumen, which likely gave the hackers access and record calls and messages. The group also allegedly breached a backdoor system used by US authorities to carry out court-ordered wiretaps.
Moreover, the Salt Typhoon group also hit the presidential campaigns of both Kamala Harris and Donald Trump in the run up to the 2024 US presidential election.
China has frequently denied having any links to the hacking group, even going so far as to accuse the CIA of being behind attacks committed by another Chinese-linked group, Volt Typhoon.
Following Viasat’s investigations into the breach which occurred via unauthorized access through a compromised device, the company said it had found no customer impact following the attack.
“Viasat believes that the incident has been remediated and has not detected any recent activity related to this event,” the company said.
The full impact of the Salt Typhoon attack may never be known as huge cuts to government departments and advisory boards were made immediately following President Trump’s return to the White House.
The main investigation being pursued by the Cyber Safety Review Board (CSRB) was cancelled after the advisory board was axed to “eliminate a misuse of resources,” according to former acting Deputy Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, Benjamin C. Huffman.
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benedict.collins@futurenet.com (Benedict Collins)
