It’s Sep. 23, 2025, and it is anything but a slow news day.  Kathmandu, Nepal, is reeling from a governance crisis following bloody Gen Z riots over government-imposed internet restrictions. Israeli strikes in the Gaza Strip killed over 40 Palestinians, injuring 200 others. France, Belgium, Monaco, Luxembourg, and Malta formally recognize a Palestinian state. The U.S. Supreme Court allows President Trump to fire Rebecca Kelly Slaughter, the last remaining Democrat FTC commissioner. The White House announced bold new actions to confront the nation’s burgeoning Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) epidemic. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security announced that more than two-thirds of the 1,800 illegal aliens held at the so-called Alligator Alcatraz had been deported. The U.S. State Department raises H-1B visa application fees to $100,000, and President Trump is due to address the opening sessions of the 80th U.N. General Assembly in New York City. Yep. Anything but a slow news day. But suddenly, all the shrieking headlines, all the “if it bleeds it leads” narratives, and all the doom and gloom talking points were dialed down to all-but inaudible.  The U.S. Secret Service stole the show, announcing raids on a massive clandestine telecom network scattered across greater New York City. A spiderweb of rental properties, warehouses, and “electronic safe houses” were stuffed with hundreds of thousands of cell phones, servers, and SIM cards capable of crippling 911 call centers and cell towers across the Eastern Seaboard. Over 80 grams of cocaine and an unspecified number of “illegal firearms” were also confiscated, along with stacks of cell phones and computers. (RELATED: The Ever-Evolving Terrorist Threat) The cyber warfare centers were dismantled before they were activated, but still. The proximity to the U.N. General Assembly reeked of sabotage, blackmail, espionage, and even first-strike disruption.  Following the initial shock, competing headlines pimped along the periphery of the rapacious 24-hour news cycle only to be condensed, thumbnailed, or entirely shut out. The Thai/Cambodian border scuffle threatened to erupt again into all-out war. President Trump shifted his stance on U.S.–Ukraine policy, suggesting that Ukraine reclaim occupied territory, and calling Russia’s campaign weak. Israel intensified airstrikes in Gaza City, killing over 50 Palestinians and closing the Allenby border crossing between the West Bank and Jordan. Democrat Adelita Grijalva won a special election in Arizona’s 7th Congressional District, and the DOJ sought an indictment against former FBI Director James Comey. Syria and Ukraine restored diplomatic relations. Storm Regassa caused 15 deaths in Taiwan. China supported a $125 billion Brazilian tropical forest fund and increased trade ties with the U.S. But you’d barely know it from the headlines. All eyes were still on NYC and the clandestine SIM Farm.  The Secret Service, Homeland Security, Office of the Director of National Intelligence, DOJ, and the NYPD, along with other state and local law enforcement partners, confiscated more than 300 Subscriber Identity Model (SIM) servers, 300,000 SIM cards from at least six locations, including abandoned apartments and vacant offices. All sites were within a 35-mile radius of the U.N. headquarters in Manhattan. The network was capable of sending 30 million text messages per minute, overwhelming cell towers in a denial-of-service (DDoS) style attack, crippling 911 services and emergency response communications. (RELATED: Spy Balloons, Exploding Pagers, Robot Wolves, and SIM Farms Redefine Warfare) Who were they, really? What were their motives? Who were their backers? It got worse, as preliminary analysis suggested involvement of nation-state actors likely linked to China, as well as drug cartels (Venezuelan?) and human trafficking rings.  China, Venezuelan cartels, and human trafficking rings? An odd marriage and a volatile cocktail — if true. And then? Coverage of the UNGA/NYC SIM Farm faded. The shock, outrage, and disbelief lasted barely three days before dropping down below the fold. Alternative headlines took center stage. A deadly drone strike against Haitian gang leaders in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, killed women and children. Protests over statehood in Ladakh, Pakistan, turned deadly. A deranged killer opened fire on an ICE detention center in Dallas, killing two detainees and wounding another. Denmark closed its Aalborg and Billund airports following suspected Russian drone incursions. Israeli soldiers killed 85 Palestinian leaders across the Gaza Strip. It was like the NYC cyberattack plot against the U.N. General Assembly never happened. The federal government has not volunteered any follow-up information, and apparently, “mainstream media” hasn’t asked. But here’s what we know — and pretty much all that we know — based upon the single Sep. 23 U.S. Secret Service press release and a few terse “communiques” to selected media sources from early October: The takedown, styled by some analysts as  Operation Silent Signal, was triggered by anonymous “telephonic threats,” made in early 2025 against Biden White House officials and the Secret Service itself, and the network was already being used to harass or surveil top U.S. leadership.  The months of planning and millions of dollars invested in hardware and housing for the UNGA cyberattack operation were driven by “nation-state threat actors” from at least one foreign nation, likely Red China. The network was being used to facilitate communication between this foreign government and Venezuelan (possibly Mexican) drug cartels and terrorist organizations. But we haven’t received progress reports, updates, or definitive answers. Who were they, really? What were their motives? Who were their backers? Where are the sanctions, grand juries, indictments, arrest warrants, or arrests? Perhaps most importantly, what have we done/are we doing to prevent future attacks? Somebody rented the apartments, scouted out, and “secured” the abandoned warehouses and storage facilities. Somebody arranged and paid for the electricity to power the clandestine cyberattack platforms. Someone purchased, transported, and cached the weapons. Somebody acquired, transported, and assembled the SIM servers, and placed SIM box racks and boxes. Somebody acquired over 300,000 SIM cards and patiently inserted each and every card in their respective slots. Somebody bought, acquired, handled, and presumably used the cocaine. Someone acquired, handled, and stored illegal weapons. The forensic trail is miles wide. Receipts, bills, payments, electronic signatures, cell tower tracking, fingerprints, DNA, video surveillance,  The DOJ is silent, the FBI is silent, and the U.S. Secret Service? As late as this week, the best I could get out of the U.S. Secret Service Office of Communications and Media Relations’ Alexi Worley was: “This is an ongoing investigation. Out of concern for operational security, we cannot share any additional information at this time.”  Seriously?  After four months? The good/bad news is that we are back to mainstream “breaking news” chatter: Former First Lady Jill Biden’s former husband was arrested, charged with murdering his “current” wife. Former President Bill Clinton and wife, Hillary, will testify at Epstein hearings to avoid criminal charges. President Trump paddles Colombian President Maduro in the Oval Office. News personality kidnappers of Savannah Guthrie’s mother, Nancy Guthrie, are demanding $6 million in ransom. Ryan Routh is sentenced to life in prison for attempting to murder President Trump. Japan’s conservative prime minister Sanae Takaichi won in a landslide victory after gambling on a snap high-stakes election. Oh, and the Washington Post fires one-third of its staff. READ MORE from Mike Howard: Spy Balloons, Exploding Pagers, Robot Wolves, and SIM Farms Redefine Warfare From Alligator Alleys to Fallout Shelters Bloody Battle and Senseless Violence Threaten Thai Tourism