US lawmakers seek answers from telecoms on Chinese hacking report

WASHINGTON — 

A bipartisan radical of U.S. lawmakers asked AT&T, Verizon Communications, and Lumen Technologies connected Friday to reply questions aft a study that Chinese hackers accessed the networks of U.S. broadband providers.

The Wall Street Journal reported Saturday hackers obtained accusation from systems the national authorities uses for court-authorized wiretapping, and said the 3 companies were among the telecoms whose networks were breached.

House Energy and Commerce Committee Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers, a Republican, and the apical Democrat connected the committee Representative Frank Pallone on with Representatives Bob Latta and Doris Matsui asked the 3 companies to reply questions. They are seeking a briefing and elaborate answers by adjacent Friday.

"There is simply a increasing interest regarding the cybersecurity vulnerabilities embedded successful U.S. telecommunications networks," the lawmakers said. They are asking for details connected what accusation was seized and erstwhile the companies learned astir the intrusion.

AT&T and Lumen declined to comment, portion Verizon did not instantly comment.

It was unclear erstwhile the hack occurred.

Hackers mightiness person held entree for months to web infrastructure utilized by the companies to cooperate with court-authorized U.S. requests for communications data, the Journal said. It said the hackers had besides accessed different tranches of net traffic.

China's overseas ministry said connected Sunday that it was not alert of the onslaught described successful the study but said the United States had "concocted a mendacious narrative" to "frame" China successful the past.