Sensitive military information was indeed obtained by the Chinese Spy Balloon.

 

In February, a Chinese spy balloon flew over the United States, claiming to be a weather balloon that had blown off course. However, U.S. officials confirmed that the balloon collected sensitive military information in real time, transmitting electronic signals from multiple military sites. The balloon entered U.S. airspace over Alaska, made its way through Canada, and re-entered the U.S. over Montana. President Joe Biden eventually gave the go-ahead to shoot down the spy balloon, which was the size of three school buses when it was over the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of South Carolina.
After receiving backlash for not shooting it down earlier, Biden said at the time that he was waiting to take the balloon down until it would not pose a risk to civilians on the ground. Officials knew the direction the balloon was taking and could proactively shut down its military communication systems to censor signals on the bases before the balloon could access them. Meanwhile, China has repeatedly denied obtaining any surveillance information, saying the U.S. overreacted, but officials are still looking into which company, department, or organization was responsible for the balloon.
The remains of the balloon were collected by the U.S. Navy and are still being examined by the FBI. The FBI is still trying to determine what algorithm was used for the balloon’s software, how it worked, and how it was powered and designed. Biden said the balloon was “not a major breach” but added, “It’s a violation of international law. It’s our airspace. And once it comes into our space, we can do what we want with it.”