Early this morning, my good friend Luther Ray Abel, formerly of our American Spectator parish, called my attention to a breaking news story involving a “telecom threat” taken down by the Secret Service, one capable of “crippling” New York City cell service. Digging deeper, it became clear that the threat was much more than simply another in the sadly too common denial-of-service cyberattacks.

Instead, this was something huge. The threat system consisted of more than 300 SIM servers and more than 100,000 SIM cards spread within a 35-mile radius of New York City. The Secret Service indicated that the devices could carry out anonymous telephone threats and disable cell towers, while facilitating encrypted communication between potential threat actors and criminal enterprises. The initial coverage focused on the threat to New York City, and this is certainly significant in its own right. After all, the repercussions of a massive telecommunications attack on New York City would reverberate nationally, even globally. Still, we might reasonably wonder if other cities have been similarly targeted — Washington, D.C., for example.

Tellingly, the Secret Service also stated that, “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.” Of all the disturbing aspects of this emerging story, this may be the most disturbing. The technical expertise demonstrated by this threat would likely be far beyond the capability of ordinary criminals, and if it proves that a hostile foreign power is behind this, then that foreign power is very hostile indeed. When this power is identified, the American people need to know — there can be no hiding behind diplomatic niceties or fear of provocation. (RELATED: How To Beat China in the Great Power Competition)

I have my suspicions. For the last several years, I’ve repeatedly highlighted the threat from China, very specifically the multifaceted efforts by the Chinese Ministry of State Security to cultivate terror capabilities across the United States. I’ve argued that, in addition to the expansion of China’s military capabilities, both conventional and nuclear, the Chinese are also engaged in what military strategists call “preparing the battlespace.” If, as Xi Jinping continues to insist, the “Taiwan situation” must be resolved no later than 2027, then laying the groundwork for crippling any U.S. response takes center stage. Massive disruptive attacks within the American homeland represent a sure means of hobbling any U.S. military response to a Taiwan invasion. (RELATED: Foreign Affairs Features a Recipe for Defeat in Cold War II)

But it doesn’t stop there. Anyone who has paid attention knows that Beijing sees itself as leading a global effort to replace the U.S.-dominated world order with one more congenial to China’s cherished belief that it deserves primacy in the world of nations. And while the Chinese may see themselves as the chief rival to the U.S., they have assembled a team of ready allies and followers. Despite Vladimir Putin’s pretensions, his dependence on Xi’s goodwill is obvious. Other bad actors — Iran’s mullahs, North Korea’s Kim, Venezuela, and Cuba — all fly comfortably in China’s slipstream. (RELATED: Technology Sharing Powers the Axis of Evil)

Moreover, the suggestion that this network facilitated covert communications between “threat actors” and “criminal enterprises” suggests a further dimension to the problem. We know, for example, that the drug cartels are deeply intertwined with both terrorist networks and foreign state actors. The links between Chinese suppliers of fentanyl precursors are well-established — links tolerated, if not actively promoted, by the Chinese intelligence services. (RELATED: Trump Squeezes Maduro’s Narco-State)

We also know that there are radical elements within the U.S. whose “hate America” agendas are readily exploited by foreign state actors. The recent designation of Antifa as a terrorist enterprise is only one aspect of this threat. We have also seen how the left-wing sympathy for Hamas invites the meddling of some very dangerous foreign actors. There’s a symbiosis here. Domestic bad actors welcome foreign support, while foreign enemies promote the activities of these domestic bad actors. We’ve just witnessed, all too tragically, how assassination and mass murder create division, and how the left’s “useful idiots” fall into this hate-filled narrative.

A reckoning surely awaits us, and stories such as the one this morning serve as stark reminders that our enemies wish to ensure that this reckoning takes place on terms favorable to themselves. I’ve dramatized this in The Zebras from Minsk, which, while fictional, is rooted in the very real threats to U.S. critical infrastructure and political stability. The Secret Service has come in for some very harsh — but fully merited — criticism in the last year, but this time around, they deserve commendation for their vigilance and energy.

Still, one is reminded of what the IRA had to say in the aftermath of 1984’s failed bombing attempt to assassinate British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher and other leaders: “You were lucky this time, but you have to be lucky every time — but we only have to be lucky once.” The threat is real, and we can’t rely on good luck to see us through. We need the kind of vigilance and energy on display this morning, and we need it every day, from every agency charged with our protection. We’re in the midst of a covert war, and we can’t win if we refuse to fight.

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James H. McGee retired in 2018 after nearly four decades as a national security and counter-terrorism professional, working primarily in the nuclear security field. Since retiring, he’s begun a second career as a thriller writer. He’s just published his new novel, The Zebras from Minsk, the sequel to his well-received 2022 thriller, Letter of Reprisal. The Zebras from Minsk find the Reprisal Team fighting against an alliance of Chinese and Russian-backed terrorists, brutal child traffickers, and a corrupt anti-American billionaire, racing against time to take down a conspiracy that ranges from the hills of West Virginia to the forests of Belarus. You can find The Zebras from Minsk (and Letter of Reprisal) on Amazon in Kindle and paperback editions.