Federal authorities have uncovered what they describe as a massive covert telecommunications operation tied to China, capable of disrupting communications across New York City and beyond.
Last week, Secret Service agents revealed they had discovered a network involving 100,000 SIM cards and hundreds of servers spread across multiple sites near the United Nations headquarters in Manhattan. Now, investigators say an additional 200,000 SIM cards have been seized at another location in New Jersey. Officials warn the system had the potential to cripple cell towers, block 911 emergency calls, and wreak havoc on communications infrastructure, according to ABC News.
The earlier raid targeted five sites in and around New York City, where equipment was reportedly configured to allow anonymous, encrypted communications and could flood networks with up to 30 million text messages per minute. Authorities said such an attack could overwhelm cellular networks and delay critical counterterrorism or emergency response efforts.
One official briefed on the investigation emphasized the scale of the threat, noting that the sophisticated and well-funded operation could theoretically send text messages to the entire U.S. population in just 12 minutes, CBS News reported. Investigators also believe the system may have been designed for surveillance purposes in addition to potential disruption.
At this stage, no arrests have been made, and the federal investigation remains ongoing.