CCP Hackers Are Targeting US Power Grids, Water Plants, and Hospitals, Lawmakers Say

As we speak, the Chinese Communist Party is waging a full scale cyber war against the American people. An attack on our security, our infrastructure, and our way of life. The CCP has targeted the grids that power our homes, the facilities that treat our water, and the hospitals that care for us. As part of their cyber warfare on the American people, last year, a Chinese hacking group called Salt Typhoon infiltrated America's leading telecommunications firms, including Verizon and AT&T. This group dedicated vast resources to accessing our most sensitive data, information found on our phones and wireless devices, including likely listening to phone calls conducted by President Trump and Vice President Vance. This is not an isolated incident. Another Chinese hacking group, Volt Typhoon, has been working to position itself inside our critical infrastructure. According to intelligence officials, Volt is preparing to disrupt or or destroy vital services in the event of a crisis over Taiwan. It is clear Xi Jinping's goal is to sabotage our way of life when the time is right for his regime. These cyber operations are part of a broader, coordinated effort by the Chinese Communist Party targeting everything from water utilities in Hawaii to oil pipelines on the west coast and even the Texas power grid. The party's goal is clear, to undermine the very systems that keep this country running. We must understand that this isn't just a cyber threat. This is part of the CCP's larger strategy to destroy the American way of life. As we've seen, with this deliberate flooding of fentanyl into our communities, the CCP will stop at nothing, even if it caused the lives of hundreds of thousands of Americans to advance its goals of global dominance. Just last fall, the ranking member and I warned that Chinese infiltration of our critical infrastructure is like a loaded gun aimed directly at the American people. Today, that gun is aimed and ready to fire. For example, CCP linked companies like DJI and Autel control 85% of the domestic drone market, while 80% of US ports rely on cranes supplied by ZPMC, another PRC entity. With Volt Typhoon, the Chinese Communist Party is prepared to pull that trigger the moment it suits the interests of Xi Jinping and his regime. The CCP views all forms of warfare, cyber, economic, ideological and military as different tools to achieve the same goal. Global domination through the defeat of its enemies. The CCP has never made any distinction between civil, civilian and military targets in warfare, cyber or any other. To ignore aggression in one field is to invite aggression in every other. There must be consequences for Chinese cyber operations that endanger the American people and our national security. CCP link Companies that enable cyber warfare against America either through direct complicity or by more subtle means such as providing backdoors, should not be allowed anywhere near our critical infrastructure. Through military civil fusion, the CCP has mobilized every sector under its control to wage cyber warfare against America. To combat that, we need to work together. There is one glimmer of good news. The Trump administration has already shown a willingness to take a more aggressive stance in cyberspace. National Security Advisor Mike Waltz and key members of the National Security Council have made clear America must be ready to use its offensive cyber capabilities to deter, disrupt and destroy adversaries that target our security. The National Security Council is signaling that America is no longer only playing defense. We are actively engaging to erode our adversaries cyber capabilities. This commitment to offensive cyber operations is aligned with one of the end goals of the Select Committee, protecting the American people from CCP interference and ensuring the safety of our critical infrastructure. We resolve to push back against China's malign actions and prevent further encroachment into our digital ecosystem. We must work with the White House, the private sector and our allies around the world to to continue educating on the dangers the CCP's cyber warfare poses to their security and how they can protect themselves. We're grateful to have with us today three excellent witnesses who will provide context on the CCP's cyber threat and highlight measures we can take to defend ourselves. In 2014, Xi Jinping told the CCP that without cybersecurity, there can be no national security. This is a rare instance where I have to agree with the General Secretary. American cybersecurity is American national security. And if we fail to hold Beijing accountable, the CCP's cyber warfare will merely be the prelude to a military assault on the American people and our allies.