Secret Service Foils Telecom Attack Near U.N. Meeting
“This protective intelligence investigation led to the discovery of more than 300 co-located SIM servers and 100,000 SIM cards across multiple sites.”
The U.S. Secret Service announced this morning the disruption of a sprawling, clandestine telecommunications network scattered across the New York tri-state area, a discovery officials say had the capacity to blind cellular communications and overwhelm emergency channels just as world leaders convened for the U.N. General Assembly.
Special Agent Matt McCool, who is in charge of the Secret Service’s New York Field Office, opened the announcement bluntly:
“Hello. My name is Matt McCool, and I’m the Special Agent in Charge of the Secret Service New York Field Office. We are making this announcement as a matter of public interest, given timing, amount and concentration of material recovered during a recent Secret Service protective intelligence investigation.”
According to McCool, the case began months ago with threats against senior officials:
“Following multiple telecommunications-related imminent threats directed towards senior US government officials, this spring, the US Secret Service began a protective intelligence investigation to determine the extent and impact these threats could have on protective operations.”
The scale of what agents uncovered was massive.
“The investigation led us to the New York tri-state area, where investigators discovered tens of thousands of co-located and network cellular devices capable of carrying out nefarious telecommunications attacks. These devices allowed anonymous, encrypted communications between potential threat actors and criminal enterprises, enabling criminal organizations to operate undetected. This network had the potential to disable cell phone towers and essentially shut down the cellular network in New York City.”
The Secret Service’s official statement put numbers to that discovery:
The Secret Service dismantled a network of more than 300 SIM servers and 100,000 SIM cards in the New York-area that were capable of crippling telecom systems and carrying out anonymous telephonic attacks, disrupting the threat before world leaders arrived for the UN General… pic.twitter.com/sZKUeGqvGY
— U.S. Secret Service (@SecretService) September 23, 2025
“This protective intelligence investigation led to the discovery of more than 300 co-located SIM servers and 100,000 SIM cards across multiple sites. In addition to carrying out anonymous telephonic threats, these devices could be used to conduct a wide range of telecommunications attacks.”
Fox News emphasized the proximity of the equipment to the world’s leaders:
“The devices were concentrated within 35 miles of the ongoing United Nations General Assembly meeting in New York City… While forensic examination of these devices is ongoing, early analysis indicates cellular communications between nation-state threat actors and individuals that are known to federal law enforcement.”
McCool stressed the urgency of acting before the threat became operational:
“Given the timing, location, and proximity and potential for significant disruptions to the New York telecom system, we moved quickly to disrupt this network. To be clear, these recovered devices no longer pose a threat to the New York tri-state area.”
Fox 5 NY underscored how devastating the system could have been if activated:
“According to investigators, the network had the capacity to jam 911 calls, take down cell towers and cripple the city’s communication infrastructure at its most vulnerable moment… Agents say it was a sophisticated and costly operation, with millions spent on equipment and a capability to send up to 30 million messages per minute.”
The forensic work is still underway.
“We will continue working towards identifying those responsible and their intent, including whether their plan was to disrupt the UN General Assembly and communications of government and emergency personnel during the official visit of world leaders in and around New York City. Forensic examinations of the equivalent of 100,000 cell phones’ worth of data is underway. Early analysis indicates cellular communications between foreign actors and individuals that are known to federal law enforcement.”
And the director of the Secret Service, Sean Curran, emphasized the broader stakes:
“The potential for disruption to our country’s telecommunications posed by this network of devices cannot be overstated. The U.S. Secret Service’s protective mission is all about prevention, and this investigation makes it clear to potential bad actors that imminent threats to our protectees will be immediately investigated, tracked down and dismantled.”
For now, officials stress the immediate danger has been neutralized.
“This is an open and active investigation, and we have no arrest to announce today. Rather, this announcement is designed to safeguard critical infrastructure and responsibly provide the public what we can at this time, the Secret Service will continue to run down all leads until we fully understand the intent of the operation and identify those responsible.”
The bust is a stark warning that modern attackers may aim not for buildings but for the invisible systems that keep cities talking, and this time, prevention appears to have worked.
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Comments
To set up something this big didn’t happen overnight. Wonder what tipped off the Secret Service to uncover the operation? I would assume there are some digital fingerprints all over the equipment which would either be serial numbers that can be tracked or electronics linking back to the perps?
Increased numbers of duplicate or unknown devices appearing on the cell networks.
The reporter is confused, and possibly the investigator too. Encrypted communication isn’t a threat, and how is the telephone network supposed to carry these nefarious communications if it’s disrupted. Make up your mind.
There’s always land lines.
You are such an idiot. It’s right there in the report: “According to investigators, the network had the capacity to jam 911 calls, take down cell towers and cripple the city’s communication infrastructure at its most vulnerable moment” It’s called a Distributed Denial of Service attack. Happens to the Internet all the time, usually targeted at a specific site.
The village idiot and dim-witted cretin chimes in with more excrement from his greasy mouth.
the un is just another lefty cocktail party at the expense of the american tax payers who keeps us at bay with their anti western values agenda
‘No arrest to announce’ is not the same as ‘we’ve made no arrests.’ Could they have people in custody already? I wonder if the federal disclosure laws treat arrested foreign agents differently than more routine arrestees (which are required to make a first appearence within 72-hours of arrest).
Also, how do you pay for 100K sim cards in cash? You have to presume they used some kind of untraceable payment method, right?
Who says anyone paid for them? They roll off assembly lines in China.
Lol. Someone has to pay for them. SIM cards don’t do anything until they’re recognized and activated by a cellular provider. THAT is what you’re paying for…each month. I find it difficult to believe that they’re using monthly pre-paid service plans (that can be paid for in cash at a bodega).
As far as I know everyone who is in the custody of the civilian authorities is entitled to habeas corpus, and therefore must be brought before a magistrate.
That would include those accused of being foreign agents, if they’re being held by the civilian authorities rather than by the military. But genuine foreign agents are likely to waive that right, so the arrest can be kept secret while the two governments work it out behind the scenes.
Even prisoners of war, who are not entitled to habeas, can challenge that determination itself; if they claim they’re not prisoners of war, then the military must give them due process to determine that question. Once it’s determined that they’re genuine POWs then that’s the end of the inquiry; the military doesn’t have to justify why it wants to hold them, or for how long.
The telephone was an evil invention. Telegrams were just fine. I don’t want to hear anybody’s voice or see his face on routine matters, and texts create an annoying immediacy. Take me back to the Victorian age
lol
good one
In 1879 William Preece, then the chief engineer for the UK’s Postmaster General, testifying before a Parliamentary committee, was asked whether he thought the telephone would take off in the UK as it apparently had in the USA. He replied “I fancy that the descriptions we get of its use in America are a little exaggerated; but there are conditions in America which necessitate the use of instruments of this kind more there than here. Here we have a superabundance of messengers, errand boys, and things of that kind. …”
“Special Agent Matt McCool“
😎😎😎
Come on now. That’s the kind of name you find in comic books.
dean martin
The 35 mile distance suggests that someone pulled out of their backside that the intended victim was the UN General Assembly. I suspect it was something much closer to the equipment.
Or, if it was really all over the New York tri-state area, something much more widespread. This would’ve been a super weapon for the terrorists to have had in place on 9-11.
Seems a bit large of a DNS infrastructure to support even a massive heist – feels more like a State Actor. And tech support for some terrorist plan.
While China (for example) could be an under-the-table source for 100,000 SIM cards this feels more like (say) an Iranian Op to me. Sabotaging comms for the public and emergency services would only be the tech support – I hope the FBI etc., are seriously investigating to discover the actual planned PHYSICAL attack that was to follow.
10/7my thoughts too
China
Iran
So all the buildings were empty?
Who were they rented to?
10/7
I listened to an interview this afternoon with the head SS agent in charge of the NY field office. It sounds like this was more of a criminal enterprise and less something constructed to commit mayhem against the UN general assembly….although the potential to do that was built into the system they constructed. The ‘network’ was used by a variety of known criminals, both foreign and domestic for various criminal purposes. He wouldn’t get more specific than that.
If the operation is as as large as they suggest I suspect involvement by an unfriendly foreign government.
35 miles gets you far enough out of the heart of NYC for the rents to come down considerably. Even state actors have budgets…
No one seems to be saying that it was intended for the General Assembly. It seems to be just a happy coincidence that they stopped it in time for that.
And this is just the NY hub. What else has been set up under the watchful eyes of democrat controlled localities?
Agreed.👍🏻