This is your Dragon's Code: America Under Cyber Siege podcast.

Hey everyone, it’s Ting. I figured, since you’re here, you want the real deal—not just the headlines, but the juicy, nerdy details on how Beijing’s digital ninjas have been giving Uncle Sam’s cybersecurity teams a serious case of caffeine overdose this past week. Let’s get into it.

The week’s big splash comes courtesy of F5 Networks, which dropped a bombshell SEC filing: nation-state hackers—we’re talking the cream of the crop, likely Beijing-backed—breached their systems, maintained “long-term, persistent access,” and walked off with chunks of BIG-IP source code and vulnerability research, according to F5’s own disclosures. That’s industrial-strength espionage, folks. These actors didn’t just pop in for a look; they set up shop, read the manuals, and took the blueprints—details on how some F5 customers, including federal agencies, have their gear configured. The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, or CISA, is now running around with its hair on fire, telling agencies to patch, pull management interfaces offline, and, if you’re still running end-of-life devices, well, good luck. CISA’s Nick Andersen is clear: as of now, no federal agencies are confirmed compromised, but the risk is huge—F5 is everywhere in government. This is shades of SolarWinds, just swap out the cast for a new crew and add a side of supply-chain jitters.

But how’d they do it, you ask? Public details are thin, but according to F5, the intruders hit their engineering knowledge management and BIG-IP development platforms. That’s not script kiddie stuff—that’s targeted, patient, and probably involved some zero-day or spear-phishing finesse. The National Cyber Security Centre, or NCSC, in the UK, has been shouting from the rooftops that China, along with Russia, are “pre-positioning” cyber tools in critical infrastructure, ready to flip the switch when needed. Paul Chichester at NCSC says China is a “highly sophisticated and capable threat actor,” and honestly, that’s underselling it. These groups use AI to scale up their old tricks, but—critical note—they’re not yet using AI for brand-new attack types. But give them time.

Meanwhile, over in Taiwan, the National Security Bureau is reporting 2.8 million daily cyber intrusions, most attributed to China, with APT41 and Volt Typhoon hitting everything from defense to healthcare. Beijing’s playbook is clear: steal secrets, plant backdoors, and flood the zone with misinformation—sometimes using 10,000 troll accounts and 1.5 million fake posts to muddy the waters. Sound familiar? Because according to Vanderbilt University and recent U.S. intel, China’s also got private firms using AI to build data profiles on American lawmakers and spread influence. It’s like social media warfare meets cyber espionage, but with more emojis.

On the attribution front, while F5 and CISA haven’t named names, SecurityWeek notes that the threat actor’s infrastructure overlaps with Chinese APTs, though the tactics are a bit different this time—classic Beijing, keeping us guessing. And for those who love a good technical rabbit hole, GBHackers just reported that Flax Typhoon (aka Ethereal Panda) has been turning legitimate geo-mapping tools like ArcGIS into persistent backdoors, using SoftEther VPN to maintain access for over a year. These folks weaponize your own software against you, folks. If your public-facing apps aren’t being watched like a hawk, you’re basically rolling out the welcome mat.

So, what are the defenders doing? CISA is pushing patches, urging agencies to hunt for signs of compromise, and working with critical infrastructure sectors. But here’s the kicker: according to Nextgov, U.S. influence and disinfo-fighting offices have been gutted, and agencies are pulling back from content takedowns—partly due to lawsuits over “censorship.” The result? Foreign adversaries are pouring gas...

This is your Dragon's Code: America Under Cyber Siege podcast.

Hey listeners, it’s Ting here, your go-to for all things China, cyber, and hacking. Forget movie villains—real digital dragons are prowling America’s critical infrastructure, and this past week was a masterclass in cyber subterfuge, starring Beijing’s finest. Buckle up, because this is the frontline of Dragon’s Code: America Under Cyber Siege.

Let’s jump in fast—Google’s Threat Intelligence and Mandiant put a giant red pin on “BRICKSTORM,” a new, stealthy campaign tied to infamous Chinese group UNC5221. Their backdoor malware is hitting legal firms, SaaS providers, and tech companies. Why is everyone panicking? Because, as Google’s team points out, BRICKSTORM isn’t about smash and grab. This is the art of stealth—attackers worm in, plant long-term backdoors, and keep quiet for over 400 days on average. It’s less Ocean’s Eleven, more ninja monastery. The main methodology: zero-day exploitation of network appliances, living off the land, and credential abuse by masquerading as real employees. Their code is clean, their log-hiding superb, making digital forensics a nightmare.

Don’t think this is just about tech firms—America’s skeleton, the power grid, water treatment plants, even telecom networks have been targets. Volt Typhoon, another PLA-linked team, especially loves critical infrastructure. A former NSA chief, Tim Hawk—now basically the Nick Fury of cyber—reports these Chinese operatives are in systems “just laying dormant,” not pillaging data, but ready to flip the switch if conflict erupts. We’re talking potential chaos: pipelines, hospitals, and 9-1-1 comms, all on the edge of remote sabotage.

Attribution? Experts like those at Google and the DOJ say trace signatures and infrastructure point squarely to the Chinese People’s Liberation Army and Ministry of State Security. Earlier this year, the DOJ indicted 12 Chinese nationals, two with official government rank, tying them to espionage against over 100 U.S. entities—defense, Treasury, healthcare, and more. The scale is chilling: the PLA counts around 60,000 cyber personnel, most focused on offense, compared to about 6,000 at U.S. Cyber Command.

On the defense, the White House and CISA launched coordinated mitigation efforts: isolating infected networks, patching vulnerabilities, deploying endpoint detection, and ramping up intel sharing between government and affected firms. But as Nick Lawler, a power utility manager who had to rebuild his entire network, put it, “It’s way harder to kick them out than to keep them out.” The key lesson: basics matter—strong authentication, network segmentation, regular threat hunting. And, as security guru Jake Williams reminds, “The real battle is information sharing. Until companies own up and work together, we’re fighting blind.”

If you think these digital dragon attacks are about business secrets, think bigger. Xi Jinping’s vision of cyber superpower status means destabilizing rivals during any crisis. Every hidden backdoor is a loaded gun pointed at America’s core systems. The future? Experts like Tim Hawk urge relentless vigilance and honest collaboration—not just government squabbling, but a whole-of-society shield. This is a wake-up call—sleep on it, and we all might get burned.

That’s all for today on Dragon’s Code. Thanks for tuning in—don’t forget to subscribe. This has been a quiet please production, for more check out quiet please dot ai.

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This is your Dragon's Code: America Under Cyber Siege podcast.

It’s Ting here, your guide through the digital battleground, and wow, this week in America’s cyber skirmish with China has been straight out of a spy thriller. Buckle up, listeners, because Dragon’s Code: America Under Cyber Siege just dropped another level in the game, and the stakes climbed to DEFCON “Hope You Changed Your Password.”

Let’s cut through the static. Since last Monday, US cybersecurity command centers have been humming, crackling with alerts, and I’m not talking about someone forgetting their badge at the NSA. According to General Tim Haugh, the recently retired head of NSA and US Cyber Command, China’s cyber offensive hit new heights, targeting energy grids, water systems, and even sections of stock market digital plumbing. 60 Minutes is calling it the “China Hack” and brought Haugh front and center for his first post-retirement TV interview. The methodologies? Deeply sophisticated supply chain intrusions, living-off-the-land tactics, and leveraging zero-day flaws like chess masters with five moves ahead. If you blinked this week, Chinese cyber operatives used custom malware to infiltrate SCADA systems running public utilities in Texas and Michigan, apparently via a vendor update poisoned months ago.

On attribution, it’s not just digital breadcrumbs. Forensic evidence points to regional cyber cells situated in Shenzhen and Chengdu, with code signatures linked to the infamous APT41 and newly named group “Lotus Echo.” The smoking gun? Researchers from FireEye and Microsoft flagged encrypted command-and-control chatter matching patterns in past joints that traced back to China’s Ministry of State Security. Even some fancy Mandarin-language error messages left behind, for flavor.

But American defenders weren’t caught napping. As soon as the breach alerts hit, response teams at CISA and private partners like CrowdStrike spun up isolation protocols—segmenting infected networks, flagging suspect IP ranges, and pushing urgent firmware patches faster than you can say “audit log.” JD Vance, the Vice President, told Fox News it’s still a “delicate dance,” but believes the US “holds far more cards” this round, referencing the leverage brought not just by defensive firepower but also by new trade punishments, including 100% tariffs and bans on certain Chinese tech. Some measures targeted critical software, choking off the same systems Chinese operators typically use for staging attacks.

Cyber pros, like Nvidia’s Jensen Huang, are sounding the alarm too. He said on the BG2 tech podcast that the gap in semiconductor and AI hardware between the US and China is now down to just “nanoseconds,” warning decisions about export bans are double-edged swords. The consensus? Defensive tech can’t lag behind brute force attacks.

The biggest lesson learned, hollered loud by everyone from General Haugh to the nerds at MITRE: it’s time for a “whole-of-everyone” approach—not just government but industry, local utilities, and you, yes you, changing those default login credentials. Lockdown isn’t enough; proactive monitoring, unified threat intelligence, and international coordination are the new normal if America’s going to keep the dragon’s code out of our digital castle.

Listeners, thanks for tuning in with Ting—where cyber is always fun, China is never boring, and hacking? Well, it’s just Tuesday. Don’t forget to subscribe for more secrets decrypted. This has been a quiet please production, for more check out quiet please dot ai.

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This is your Dragon's Code: America Under Cyber Siege podcast.

Hey listeners, Ting here, and wow, what a week it's been in the cyber trenches. Let me tell you, China's digital offensive against American infrastructure just shifted into overdrive, and we need to talk about it.

So here's what went down. Chinese threat actors are getting scary creative with their toolkits. According to SC World, we're seeing China-nexus groups weaponizing open-source tools like Nezha in sophisticated campaigns targeting critical infrastructure. These aren't your garden-variety DDoS attacks anymore, folks. We're talking about a deliberate evolution from nuisance attacks to surgical strikes on the systems that keep America running.

The scale is staggering. Multiple international firms got hit by what researchers are calling Scattered Lapsus Hunters, with the UTA0388 operation running spear-phishing campaigns across North America, Europe, and Asia. And get this, they're exploiting OpenAI's ChatGPT in their social engineering tactics. Yeah, AI versus AI, because 2025 isn't dystopian enough already.

But wait, it gets juicier. Microsoft's Storm-2603 group is abusing Velociraptor, which is ironically a digital forensics and incident response tool, to maintain persistent access to victim networks during ransomware attacks. Dark Reading reported they're essentially turning our own defense tools against us. That's like breaking into a house using the homeowner's locksmith kit.

The American Security Project is sounding serious alarms about agentic AI cyberweapons becoming the tool of choice for state-sponsored attackers. These autonomous systems can conduct reconnaissance, modify system settings, and adapt to new environments without human intervention. We're talking about cyber attacks that learn and evolve in real-time.

Now, attribution is getting clearer. Bloomberg reports the U.S. is considering an initial determination that TP-Link Systems poses a national security threat. Why? Because Chinese state-sponsored groups Volt Typhoon and Salt Typhoon have been exploiting TP-Link routers to hit U.S. critical infrastructure. This could lead to outright bans on their operations.

The impact is bleeding into geopolitics too. President Trump is threatening massive tariff increases after China restricted rare earth exports, calling their timing especially hostile. There's even talk of canceling his meeting with Xi Jinping. Trade wars and cyber wars are now completely intertwined.

On the defense side, the Senate just moved Kirsten Davies closer to becoming Pentagon CIO. Over a hundred cybersecurity experts backed her nomination, calling her a battle-tested CISO with the operational realism needed for this increasingly hostile cyber terrain. Her philosophy? Commercial solutions first, government-unique solutions only when absolutely necessary.

The lesson here? Supply chains are battlefields, and as War on the Rocks puts it, adversaries can win without firing a shot by targeting our digital and physical infrastructure simultaneously. We need to stop treating cyber defense as reactive and start building resilience into everything we do.

Thanks for tuning in, listeners. Make sure to subscribe so you don't miss the next update on this digital cold war.

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This is your Dragon's Code: America Under Cyber Siege podcast.

Hey there, folks I'm Ting, and let's dive straight into the wild world of cyber espionage. The past week has been a real ride, with some of the most sophisticated attacks on US infrastructure you've ever seen. I'm talking about the Chinese hackers — they're like the special forces of the cyber world, super stealthy and always on the hunt for the next big score.

Recently, these hackers have been targeting major US law firms like Williams & Connolly. They deployed zero-day attacks to breach the firm's email systems, but crucially, there's no evidence they extracted any confidential client data. This is crucial because it speaks to the precision and intent of these attacks — they're not just fishing for whatever they can get; they're going after specific intel, possibly related to national security or trade.

Cybersecurity firm Mandiant has been tracking these hackers since March 2025, noting they've been targeting legal services and software companies. It's clear they're on a mission to gather strategic information, which raises concerns about the involvement of nation-state actors. The FBI is investigating these incidents, and the official line is that these are state-sponsored attacks, part of a broader campaign to undermine US interests.

Meanwhile, the timing of another major breach is raising eyebrows. The Crimson Collective, a cybercriminal group, announced a significant supply chain attack on Red Hat's consulting division during the US government shutdown. This hit during a time when federal cybersecurity teams were operating at reduced capacity, making it a perfect storm for attackers. The stolen data includes sensitive information from defense contractors and government agencies, which is a big deal because it exposes the US's defense industrial base at a moment of maximum vulnerability.

CISA, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, is caught in the crossfire. With staff reductions and a lack of funding, they're struggling to respond effectively. Expert Richard Forno notes that the shutdown has left the agency hobbled just when its services are needed most. He suggests that Congress could ensure critical security agencies are immune from shutdowns, which would help maintain their ability to protect American cyberspace.

So, what can we learn from all this? First, timing is everything in cyber warfare. Second, the sophistication of these attacks suggests we're dealing with more than just your average hackers — we're likely looking at nation-state involvement. And third, defense strategies need to evolve beyond just patching vulnerabilities; we need proactive models that can adapt to new threats.

Thanks for tuning in, folks If you want more insights into the world of cyber espionage, be sure to subscribe for more updates from me and the Dragon's Code team.

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This is your Dragon's Code: America Under Cyber Siege podcast.

I’m Ting, your cyber sherpa, quantum ninja, and Dragon’s Code decoder—and wow, listeners, if you thought last week in cybersecurity was wild, buckle up. Because America has just experienced what Booz Allen Hamilton calls “AI-accelerated supply chain infiltration, edge device domination, and attribution war”—that’s right, a full-court cyber press from China that’s got even seasoned experts gulping their Red Bulls.

So what did Beijing deploy this time? The hottest ticket: abusing trusted US vendor relationships. Chinese state-backed actors slipped through backdoors and vulnerabilities in network gear, especially PRC-made routers lurking in our energy grids, defense networks, and—wait for it—our ports. Critical industries, from the power sector to logistics, saw persistent PRC access thanks to hidden device features and gaps in procurement hygiene. The phrase “zero-day” came up more than pumpkin spice. What makes these exploits special? AI algorithms now drive detection evasion and speed, letting attackers recon and pivot through American infrastructure at what Booz Allen calls “machine scale.” That means cyber teams are no longer chasing hackers, they’re chasing AIs.

Speaking of attribution—China’s top-tier APT groups didn’t just slip in quietly. According to the US intelligence community, they expertly pivoted between techniques, using cloud proxies and Asian proxy service WgetCloud, with code-sharing and network cover that blurred the line between state craft and criminal acts. And if you think contested attribution is just a reporting headache, consider this: officials spotted Chinese teams actively modifying attack signatures mid-operation to stall response, leaving defenders drooling over packet logs without definitive evidence for that juicy press release.

Now, listeners, let’s talk targets. Besides our power and ports, cell tower infrastructure came under fresh assault—prompting CISA to promote Stephen Casapulla, the ultimate infrastructure Yoda, as its new Executive Assistant Director. He’s rallying squads to close gaps left by legacy SIM card networks and choke off activity by Beijing companies like Sichuan Juxinhe and Huanyu Tianqiong, which feed data straight to the PLA and MSS. The threat isn’t just foreign; hoax SWAT raids right here in New York and beyond have been linked to these compromised comms. That’s cyber ops with cross-continental reach.

What saved the day—well, partially? The pivot to zero trust architecture. CISA deployed continuous authentication, behavior analytics, segmented vendor access, and time-bound session credentials. Adversary emulation drills—a fancy way to say “pretend you’re the spy”—became standard, and government agencies now play whack-a-mole with vendor and device access logs, looking for the tiniest blip of abnormality. According to acting director Madhu Gottumukkala, the only way forward is defense in depth, relentless audits, and, frankly, treating every vendor as if they might moonlight for the Ministry of State Security.

The big lesson? Don’t treat Chinese cyber ops as isolated incidents. They’re deliberate, incremental erosion—of agility, coordination, and trust. The goal is to shift the competitive environment under our feet, one router at a time. As Booz Allen framed it, the window to act is closing: modernize, segment, and audit like your national security depends on it—because it does.

That’s the latest from Dragon’s Code: America Under Cyber Siege. Thanks for tuning in! Don’t forget to subscribe to keep your cyber senses sharp. This has been a quiet please production, for more check out quiet please dot ai.

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This...

This is your Dragon's Code: America Under Cyber Siege podcast.

Hey there, folks It's Ting here, and I'm diving straight into the wild world of cyber espionage. In recent days, the US has faced some incredibly sophisticated Chinese cyber operations targeting critical infrastructure. Let's jump right in.

Federal investigators have just foiled a massive plot to disrupt New York City's telecom network. This operation involved hundreds of SIM servers and over 100,000 SIM cards spread across a 35-mile radius of Manhattan. The aim was to overload cellular towers, jam emergency calls, and enable anonymous communications. While no arrests have been made, officials point to links with Chinese entities, based on equipment and operational patterns.

Meanwhile, cybersecurity experts are sounding off about the vulnerabilities this plot exposed. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security is emphasizing the need for better supply chain monitoring for SIM cards and servers. This incident highlights the potential for low-tech methods to cause high-impact disruptions.

In another development, Microsoft has stopped using China-based engineers for U.S. Department of Defense cloud systems, citing risks. This move follows a recent breach of Army National Guard systems by Chinese state-sponsored hackers, who accessed network configurations and administrator credentials.

Experts warn that these attacks are part of a broader geopolitical strategy, with China being a major player in global cyber espionage. The Phantom Taurus group, recently identified, has been targeting governments and telecoms across Africa, the Middle East, and Asia. This level of sophistication underscores the need for advanced anomaly detection and closer collaboration between telecom firms and intelligence agencies.

As we wrap up, remember that staying safe in the cyber world means staying informed. Thanks for tuning in If you enjoyed this, be sure to subscribe for more updates. This has been a quiet please production, for more check out quiet please dot ai.

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This is your Dragon's Code: America Under Cyber Siege podcast.

Hey listeners, Ting here, your friendly cyber sage—with just enough fun to make packet sniffers and malware payloads sound cool. It’s Friday, October 3rd, 2025, and, wow, this week has been a wild ride on Dragon’s Code: America Under Cyber Siege. Let’s dive straight into the digital trenches because, frankly, firewalls and coffee alone aren't enough anymore.

The past few days have seen **Chinese cyber groups step up their game** in spectacular fashion. For starters, Phantom Taurus, a newly flagged adversary by Palo Alto Networks’ Unit 42, is making headlines. These folks aren’t your run-of-the-mill script kiddies—they’ve managed to infiltrate Microsoft Exchange servers of foreign ministries, zeroing in on diplomatic emails and military ops. Their weapon of choice? The NET-STAR .NET malware suite, packed with memory-resident backdoors like IIServerCore and super-stealthy loaders that bypass every known Microsoft defense. All communications are cloaked in AES encryption, and these malware minions live only in memory, making detection a nightmare. Phantom Taurus even timestomps its payloads, confusing digital forensics teams by rewriting file timestamps—talk about messing with your security analyst's sleep schedule.

Attack methodology? Think multi-stage persistence: from phishing lures for initial access, then shifting to direct SQL database attacks where scripts search for geopolitical keywords like “Pakistan,” “Afghanistan,” and, rather cheekily, phrases associated with the China-Arab summit. They adapt tactics on the fly, targeting the organizations with the juiciest international secrets.

Now, attribution is crucial—no shadowy blamestorming here. Phantom Taurus’ infrastructure overlaps with known Chinese APTs like APT27 and Winnti but has unique digital fingerprints, confirming its ties to PRC intelligence. As always, China's spokesperson Liu Pengyu insists they're against cyber misdeeds—but, listeners, the evidence paints a different story.

Let’s talk **defensive measures** because not all heroes wear capes—some deploy patches and draft incident response plans. Messageware and Palo Alto experts say the #1 lesson is multilayered defenses. Update your Exchange, invest in memory inspection tools, deploy next-gen MDR (managed detection and response), and don’t neglect real-time geo-blocking. For the U.S. government, however, things are tense: CISA is hamstrung by budget cuts and a lapsed Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act. This means fewer skilled defenders, slower threat intelligence sharing, and, honestly, a widened attack surface for groups like Volt Typhoon and Phantom Taurus. The recommendation? Congress needs to "shutdown-proof" critical cyber agencies—maybe with dedicated funding or even grants tied to domain registrations.

Cybersecurity experts like Shane McNeil at the Pentagon are adamant: counterintelligence should be operational—less compliance, more digital judo. Instead of playing defense, he calls for offensive countermeasures, which include disrupting spy pipelines in academia, turning enemy agents, and actively sabotaging hostile cyber infrastructure. Our intelligence community needs wartime discipline, not just more PowerPoint decks.

The main lesson this week? Don’t just patch—pivot. Stay proactive, think offensively, and remember: every system, from federal court databases (hello, multifactor authentication challenges) to embassy email servers, is a frontline in the digital siege. Data breaches can happen in under 90 minutes, so vigilance and layered security are your best armor.

I appreciate you tuning in—stay curious, patch relentlessly, and if you enjoyed riding shotgun through the Dragon's Code, subscribe for more! This has been a quiet please production, for more check out quiet please dot ai.

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