New: China’s historic Salt Typhoon hack targeted >80 countries, reaching across globe to a far greater extent than initially understood + let spies to surveil global movements of U.S. citizens. “It should really set off alarm bells for all Americans,” FBI cyber chief says www.wsj.com/politics/nat...

“They are too big to keep failing like this." Inside Microsoft's faulty patch that opened the door to another Chinese cyber espionage operation. www.wsj.com/tech/cyberse...

North Korean IT workers are bound by a few defining characteristics: total devotion to Dear Leader Kim Jong Un, a penchant for stealing cryptocurrency and an obsession with Minions, the cuddly yellow agents of evil from “Despicable Me.” www.wsj.com/lifestyle/no...

How a North Korean scammer stole hundreds of thousands from a crypto startup www.wsj.com/business/he-...

Before launching its attack last week, Israel provided the U.S. with intel saying Iran was conducting renewed research useful for a nuclear weapon, including on an explosive triggering system. U.S. officials weren’t convinced it pointed to a decision to build a bomb. www.wsj.com/world/middle...

Some personal news: www.linkedin.com/posts/dustin...

News: The Washington Post has suffered a cyber intrusion that compromised the emails of at least several reporters at the paper, including those on the national security and economic policy teams, according to people familiar with the matter.

I wrote a story with @dustinvolz.bsky.social about a woman in Phoenix who turned her life around by operating a North Korean laptop farm. www.wsj.com/business/nor...

News: @thekrebscycle.bsky.social, a target of Trump's wrath last week, is resigning from SentinelOne to focus fully on fighting back against against the White House's campaign to punish dissent. www.wsj.com/politics/pol...

Chinese police issued wanted notices for three people they said engaged in cyberattacks against China on behalf of the U.S. National Security Agency, a rare step by Beijing as hostilities between the superpowers escalate. www.wsj.com/world/china/...

The fear among academics and lawyers now talking on the record on just about any topic that involves the federal government or the White House is really extraordinary and worrisome, and getting worse, it seems to me, every week. Dissent by an establishment figures becoming verboten in the US

A closely watched survey showed consumer sentiment souring to one of the lowest levels in a decade. Respondents said they were braced for prices to surge 6.7% in the year ahead, a level of pessimism about costs last seen in the inflation-wracked early 1980s. www.wsj.com/livecoverage...

Speaking this morning at Vanderbilt, Rep. Mark Green, chairman of the Homeland Security Committee, compares Chinese infrastructure hacks to Russia placing a satchel charge next to a cell tower that could blow up at anytime. Also reiterates telco hacks remain ongoing.

A Wall Street Journal analysis of daily financial statements issued by the Treasury Department found government spending since the inauguration is $154 billion more than in the same period in 2024 during the administration of former President Joe Biden. www.wsj.com/politics/pol...

This is an extraordinary story/admission „The Chinese delegation linked years of intrusions into computer networks at U.S. ports, water utilities, airports and other targets, to increasing U.S. policy support for Taiwan“ www.wsj.com/politics/nat...

👀 China reportedly acknowledged to outgoing Biden officials in December that it was responsible for the Volt Typhoon critical infrastructure intrusions, linking them to "increasing U.S. policy support for Taiwan." www.wsj.com/politics/nat...

NEW: China privately gave tacit acknowledgement of big hacks of US infrastructure. People present at meeting interpreted #China as linking the hacking to US backing of Taiwan. Interesting signaling going on. Story by @dustinvolz.bsky.social www.wsj.com/politics/nat...

Sources: Chinese officials acknowledged in a secret December meeting that China was behind Volt Typhoon hacks, linking them to escalating US support for Taiwan (Dustin Volz/Wall Street Journal) Main Link | Techmeme Permalink

Chinese officials acknowledged in a December meeting with Biden officials in Geneva that Beijing was behind the Volt Typhoon intrusions into U.S. critical infrastructure citing increasing U.S. policy support for Taiwan as an excuse www.wsj.com/politics/nat...

“Wang’s comments came after the U.S. stressed that China didn’t appear to understand how dangerous prepositioning in civilian critical infrastructure was, and how much the U.S. would view it as an act of war, the former U.S. official said.”

Scoop: In a secret summit in Geneva last December, Chinese officials tacitly acknowledged being responsible for the Volt Typhoon intrusions on U.S. critical infrastructure systems and linked the attacks to U.S. support for Taiwan. www.wsj.com/politics/nat...

Sen. Wyden puts hold on Sean Plankey to lead CISA, citing “cover up” over unreleased agency report on telecom sector vulnerabilities: www.nextgov.com/cybersecurit...

"The buildup of stuff is a uniquely American phenomenon. Roughly 80% of the world’s self-storage facilities are located in the U.S." www.wsj.com/personal-fin...

During the presidential transition, conspiracy theorist Laura Loomer—who has called 9/11 an "inside job"—unsuccessfully sought contracts to vet incoming administration officials, according to people familiar with the matter. But now, Loomer's the one calling the shots. www.wsj.com/politics/nat...

The Trump administration said Friday that Medicare and Medicaid won’t expand coverage of popular anti-obesity drugs, rejecting a proposal issued late last year by the Biden administration. www.wsj.com/health/healt...

NSA officials feared DOGE and Elon Musk. Instead, Laura Loomer came for their leader. How the conspiracy theorist got Trump’s ear for major national security personnel decisions. www.wsj.com/politics/nat...

tfw it's your first week back from parental leave and Trump fires the most important person on your beat

Gen. Tim Haugh, the director of the NSA, was fired alongside his deputy, Wendy Noble, on Thursday, I'm told. The reasons for the dismissal were not immediately clear.

I'm back at WSJ today after taking some time away for parental leave. Grateful for every moment I've had at home with my family. Please reach out if you'd like to catch up or have any tips to share. I understand the news has been slow lately, so let's change that.

News Services Like Voice of America Helped Save My Family "Hearing the truth from Western news broadcasts helped spare my family from the worst consequences of the Chernobyl disaster." www.wsj.com/world/europe...

“These first two months have been much more aggressively authoritarian than almost any other comparable case I know of democratic backsliding,” said Steven Levitsky, a Harvard political scientist and coauthor of “How Democracies Die” and “Competitive Authoritarianism” www.nytimes.com/2025/03/20/w...

Trump administration lawyers have determined that an 18th-century wartime law the president has invoked to deport suspected members of a Venezuelan gang allows federal agents to enter homes without a warrant, according to people familiar with internal discussions. www.nytimes.com/2025/03/20/u...

New: Elon Musk made a secret trip yesterday to the National Security Agency, the nation’s chief eavesdropping agency, meeting with leadership a week after saying the spy service needed an “overhaul.” www.wsj.com/politics/nat...

Thrilled and honored to share this @sabew.bsky.social award for our Salt Typhoon reporting with a team of tremendously talented colleagues. sabew.org/2025/03/2024...

New: Chinese hackers compromised the RNC last summer and stole internal files. The GOP never reported the intrusion to the FBI, fearing leaks. www.wsj.com/politics/nat...

"The disclosure marks Cisco's first confirmation that its products were affected by the widespread compromise of U.S. and foreign telecom companies, called the Salt Typhoon attack by investigators." www.wsj.com/livecoverage...

On Friday night, HHS ordered CDC to take down all flu vaccine campaign materials from its website. Materials are starting to come down. For example, a campaign explaining that flu shot can reduce flu severity from "wild to mild" is now offline. Left image is from Friday, right is now Meanwhile...

“Everything he does is either to be vengeful or to accumulate wealth, power and adulation,” Ty Cobb, a former Trump WH lawyer, said. Trump sees an opportunity, he said, because “all these people want a piece of him.” www.wsj.com/politics/ele...

Clerked for Justice Scalia, member of the Federalist Society, picked by Trump administration last month

The Russian co-founder of a popular bitcoin exchange, Alexander Vinnik, will be released from U.S. custody Wednesday, a day after a deal between Washington and Moscow freed American Marc Fogel, a U.S. official said. www.wsj.com/world/russia...

Personal news: Earlier this week, my wife did the most extraordinary thing I’ve ever seen by delivering our baby girl into this world. Both mom and baby are doing well and we are looking forward to being home soon. I will be out on leave for a bit. Good luck out there!

Thank you for this tremendous honor!

I linked DOGE staffer Marko Elez to a deleted X account that advocated repealing the Civil Rights Act, backed a “eugenic immigration policy,” and wrote, “You could not pay me to marry outside of my ethnicity." He just resigned. www.wsj.com/tech/doge-st...

Most of what Trump's doing was previewed during the campaign last year. It's just that he's gone beyond it. Project2025 recommended remaking and shrinking USAid, not shutting it down. Kushner riffed about Gaza development, not America taking it over. www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024...

"USAID appears to be a test case for whether the Trump administration can effectively restructure a decades-old agency without meeting much legal or political resistance. So far, the answer seems to be yes." www.wsj.com/politics/pol...

News: The CIA is offering its entire workforce the same “deferred resignation” buyout made to civilian agencies last week, in a bid to make the spy agency more aligned with Trump and his priorities. Ratcliffe personally asked WH to make the offer. www.wsj.com/politics/nat...

News: The Senate Intelligence Committee narrowly advanced Tulsi Gabbard’s nomination to oversee the nation’s intelligence agencies, another step in President Trump’s effort to stock his second administration with loyal but sometimes unconventional cabinet appointments. www.wsj.com/politics/nat...

I’ll play too: Hi, I’m a cybersecurity and intelligence reporter at WSJ, where lately I have been writing about foreign election influence and China’s major hacks of U.S. telecoms. During the last Trump admin I helped break the story of the Ukraine phone call that led to his first impeachment.