China’s Hackers Are Laying Traps in U.S. Networks

China’s hackers are embedding in U.S. infrastructure in preparation to disrupt key systems and delay America’s response in a Taiwan conflict.

China's cyber operations are not just espionage—they are battlefield preparation.

By infiltrating critical U.S. infrastructure, from ports to telecom networks, Beijing is positioning itself to disrupt American military logistics and civilian stability, buying time for a potential Taiwan invasion before Washington can respond.

Chinese military-linked hackers have been embedding themselves in U.S. critical infrastructure since at least 2019, targeting sectors traditionally overlooked by intelligence agencies. Their reach extends from a water utility in Hawaii to a Houston port and an oil-and-gas processing plant.

U.S. security officials believe the group, identified as Volt Typhoon, is laying the groundwork to disrupt American military logistics in the Pacific, aiming to slow a U.S. response in the event of a Chinese invasion of Taiwan. Unlike previous cyber campaigns, Beijing didn’t rely on Chinese-made equipment to breach these systems. Instead, it exploited vulnerabilities in aging telecom hardware—equipment that U.S. firms had trusted for decades.

The scale of the intrusion became evident on August 19, 2021. In just 31 seconds, Chinese hackers penetrated the digital backbone of one of America’s largest ports. Their entry point: outdated Cisco and Netgear routers, no longer receiving security updates. Once compromised, these devices became conduits for further infiltration, blending into routine network traffic and evading detection.

Analysts at the National Security Agency had already been tracking Beijing’s cyber pre-positioning in the lead-up to a potential Taiwan conflict. The focus on Guam and the U.S. West Coast signaled a broader objective—delaying an American military response by disrupting supply chains and communications. Every hour gained would buy China more time to consolidate control over Taiwan before Washington could act.

Some targets, however, hinted at a more expansive strategy. A small air-traffic control center on the West Coast and local water-treatment plants weren’t just military assets but civilian infrastructure. This raised concerns that Beijing was preparing contingencies to sow chaos inside the U.S., whether by grounding flights or cutting off water supplies.

The intrusions weren’t limited to physical infrastructure. Chinese hackers also infiltrated cellphone networks used by senior U.S. national security officials, accessing sensitive communications. These included phone audio linked to Trump, Vice President-elect JD Vance, and figures tied to both the Trump and Harris presidential campaigns.

Perhaps even more brazen, they attempted to penetrate surveillance systems at Verizon and AT&T, seemingly to gauge U.S. counterintelligence efforts. If successful, Beijing could have gained real-time insights into how much the FBI and other agencies knew about its espionage operations, both inside the United States and abroad.

The pattern is clear: China isn’t simply gathering intelligence—it’s preparing the battlefield.