Chinese state-linked hackers breached mobile phones at "the heart of Downing Street" amid a global cyber-espionage campaign over several years targeting telecommunication networks, according to reports.

U.S. officials first alerted its allies in 2024 after finding out that hacking groups had gained access to telecom companies around the world, according to The Associated Press.

The campaign reportedly targeted multiple countries, including the U.S. and the other members of the Five Eyes intelligence alliance: Australia, Canada and New Zealand.

The breaches allegedly gave China access to the phone data of millions and the possible ability to eavesdrop on calls, read text messages and track users’ locations.

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The hackers also had the ability to record calls "at will" according to Anne Neuberger, who was a deputy U.S. national security adviser between January 2021 and January 2025, The Telegraph reported.

Neuberger said that the "Chinese gained access to networks and essentially had broad and full access," giving them the capability to "geolocate millions of individuals, to record phone calls at will."

U.S. intelligence agencies believe the breaches date back to at least 2021, but they were only identified and disclosed by U.S. authorities in 2024.

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In 2024, The Associated Press reported that U.S. federal authorities urged telecommunication companies to boost network security. The guidance, issued by the FBI and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, was to help root out the hackers and prevent similar attacks in the future.

A joint cybersecurity advisory was issued in August 2025, with the U.S. National Security Agency (NSA) and allied partners warning that Chinese state-sponsored actors were targeting networks globally.

"The malicious activity outlined in the advisory partially overlaps with cybersecurity industry reporting on Chinese state-sponsored threat actors referred to by names such as Salt Typhoon," an NSA release said.

In the U.K., officials raised concerns that senior government figures may also have been exposed. One source told The Telegraph that the breach went "right into the heart of Downing Street."

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Similarly, The Telegraph was told that there were "many" different hacking attacks on the phones of Downing Street staff and across wider government, especially when Rishi Sunak was prime minister between 2022 and 2024.

Yuval Wollman, a former Israeli intelligence chief, also told The Telegraph that Salt Typhoon was "one of the most prominent names" in the cyber-espionage world.

"While much of the public reporting has focused on U.S. targets, Salt Typhoon’s operations have extended into Europe, the Middle East and Africa, where it has targeted telecoms firms, government entities and technology companies," Wollman of cybersecurity platform CyberProof added.

In the past, China’s foreign ministry dismissed the claims as "baseless" and "lacking evidence," according to The Telegraph.

Fox News Digital has reached out to Downing Street for comment.

Iran’s internet blackout has hardened into a permanent system of digital repression, with the regime treating citizens’ access to the outside world as an "existential threat," according to digital rights monitors.

Internet monitoring group NetBlocks reported Monday that Iran’s connectivity landscape had shifted dramatically as the country entered its 22nd day of unrest, following several days of almost total nationwide internet shutdown.

"On the twenty-second day, after several days of an almost complete internet shutdown, reports emerged of limited and unstable internet connectivity in some parts of the country," NetBlocks reported.

"Indications are that we’re seeing a move toward a kind of ‘filternet plus’ censorship scheme in Iran," NetBlocks CEO Alp Toker told Fox News Digital before pointing to "a rapid decline into a darker kind of digital darkness."

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"The key difference from the pre-protest filternet arrangement is that, while internet platforms were extensively censored before, the regime is selectively whitelisting only a handful of services it deems critical for business needs.

"Even this selective access is sporadic, which means the censorship is likely still in the test phase," he added. "In practice though, ordinary users remain offline."

Toker described how the digital darkness "is in fact getting darker because the information controls are getting tighter."

"Where international links were tolerated as a window to trade, the regime is approaching each of these as potential threats," he said before adding that the regime "sees its own citizens’ ability to communicate with the rest of the world as an existential threat because the people are disaffected."

According to the Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) at least 2,571 people were killed as of Monday, with additional deaths reported but not yet fully verified amid the communications blackout.

The internet blackout began Jan. 8 amid escalating demonstrations since Dec. 28, as authorities sought to prevent protesters from organizing, sharing videos of crackdowns and communicating with the outside world.

Since then, connectivity has remained inconsistent, with frequent outages and throttling even when partial access is restored.

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Iran International reported the blackout was expected to last until at least late March, with IranWire saying government spokeswoman Fatemeh Mohajerani told media activists that access to international online services would not be restored before Nowruz, the Iranian New Year, on March 20.

"Having internet access was always a window to the outside and a lifeline for many Iranians," Toker added. "It allowed for personal expression and culture that is banned by the regime."

"These online freedoms can be as simple as online gaming, watching foreign movies or women’s ability to participate equally in spaces that would otherwise be barred by the Islamic Republic," he added.

"With the internet blackout continuing, the curtain has been drawn on that window," Toker said. "This is angering many Iranians, particularly Gen Z, who stand to lose a part of their identity."

The blackout has also coincided with cyber incidents targeting Iran’s state infrastructure.

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As previously reported by Fox News Digital, anti-regime activists hacked Iran’s national broadcaster, briefly interrupting state television to air protest messages and calls from Reza Pahlavi, the exiled son of Iran’s last shah and a prominent opposition figure.

"We aren’t able to see the specific hack here," Toker explained. "The lack of up-to-date security is an issue for Iran."

"It is caused directly by the country’s digital isolation," he said. "Iran’s internet systems are outdated, and security tools aren’t available due to internet restrictions."

Toker added that embargoes force widespread use of pirated software, which often contains hidden vulnerabilities that can be exploited to breach critical networks.

He said cyber warfare played a major role during the June 2025 clashes between Israel and Iran, prompting the blackout as a defensive measure against digital attacks. Israel, he noted, also restricted parts of its own network at the time.

"In 2026, we haven’t seen the same focus on cyber incidents, but it’s clear there’s an ongoing battle between state actors as well as individual hackers," Toker said.