A top White House official says a ninth U.S. telecoms firm has been confirmed to have been hacked as part of a sprawling Chinese espionage campaign that gave officials in Beijing access to private texts and phone conversations of an unknown number of Americans.

A White House official has added a ninth U.S. telecommunications company to the list of telecoms breached in a Chinese hacking campaign that impacted dozens of countries.

As more is learned about the Salt Typhoon breach that it attributed to China, officials are laying the blame on companies that were slow to identify

Chinese hackers called Salt Typhoon have infiltrated a ninth telecommunications firm, gaining access to information about millions of people, U.S. cybersecurity officials say.

Deputy National Security Adviser Anne Neuberger said that 'a large number' of Americans were impacted, with many working in government and politics and living in the 'Washington-Virginia area.'