US intelligence officials attributed the hacking of Donald Trump‘s presidential campaign to Iran, describing this intrusion as part of Tehran‘s broader effort to interfere in American politics.
This marks the first time the US government has blamed Iran specifically for election-related hacking.
The FBI and other federal agencies revealed that besides breaching the Trump campaign, Iran is believed to have attempted to hack into Kamala Harris‘s presidential campaign, according to reports by Associated Press.
The federal officials indicated Iran’s goal was to sow discord, undermine faith in democratic institutions, and influence the outcome of the election, especially those perceived by Iran as significant to its national security interests. “We have observed increasingly aggressive Iranian activity during this election cycle, specifically involving influence operations targeting the American public and cyber operations targeting Presidential campaigns,” said the statement released by the FBI, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency.
Iran’s mission to the United Nations has denied the allegations, asserting that Iran had neither the motive nor intention to interfere with the election and challenged the US to provide evidence.
This statement comes amid heightened tensions between Washington and Tehran, particularly regarding the US’s efforts to prevent a retaliatory strike on Israel over the assassination of Hamas official Ismail Haniyeh. An Israeli operation in southern Beirut last month resulted in the death of Hezbollah’s top commander. Although Tehran and Iran-backed Hezbollah have vowed retaliation, no strikes have occurred as diplomatic efforts and Gaza cease-fire talks continue in Qatar.
The US did not detail its methods for concluding that Iran was responsible for the hacks or describe the specific nature of any information obtained from the Trump campaign. However, the statement indicated that the intelligence community is confident that Iran has sought access to individuals with direct involvement in both political parties’ presidential campaigns through social engineering and other means.
At least three staffers from the Biden-Harris campaign were targeted with phishing emails, though investigators have found no evidence of a successful breach, as reported by The Associated Press last week.
“Such activity, including thefts and disclosures, are intended to influence the US election process. It is important to note that this approach is not new. Iran and Russia have employed these tactics not only in the United States during this and prior federal election cycles but also in other countries around the world,” the statement continued.
The Trump campaign, on August 10, disclosed that it had been hacked, noting that Iranian operatives had stolen and distributed sensitive internal documents. Confidential material, including a report vetting JD Vance as a vice-presidential candidate, ended up being leaked to news outlets such as Politico, The New York Times, and The Washington Post. So far, these outlets have refused to reveal specific details of what they received. The incident allegedly encompassed the unauthorized acquisition of confidential files, which included documents pertaining to the assessment of Trump’s vice presidential candidate, JD Vance which were later disseminated to members of the press.
Vice President Kamala Harris’ presidential campaign disclosed last week that the FBI had informed them last month of attempted hackings “In July, the campaign legal and security teams were notified by the FBI that we were targeted by a foreign actor influence operation,” a Harris campaign official told AFP. However, the campaign added, “We have robust cybersecurity measures in place and are not aware of any security breaches from these efforts.”
In early October, Microsoft issued a report outlining foreign agents’ attempts to meddle in this year’s election. It mentioned an instance where an Iranian military intelligence unit sent a spear-phishing email to a high-ranking official of a presidential campaign through a compromised email account of a former senior advisor.
Additionally, Google reported that an Iranian group linked to the country’s Revolutionary Guard has attempted to infiltrate the personal email accounts of approximately a dozen individuals associated with President Joe Biden and Trump since May.
This marks the first time the US government has blamed Iran specifically for election-related hacking.
The FBI and other federal agencies revealed that besides breaching the Trump campaign, Iran is believed to have attempted to hack into Kamala Harris‘s presidential campaign, according to reports by Associated Press.
The federal officials indicated Iran’s goal was to sow discord, undermine faith in democratic institutions, and influence the outcome of the election, especially those perceived by Iran as significant to its national security interests. “We have observed increasingly aggressive Iranian activity during this election cycle, specifically involving influence operations targeting the American public and cyber operations targeting Presidential campaigns,” said the statement released by the FBI, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency.
Iran’s mission to the United Nations has denied the allegations, asserting that Iran had neither the motive nor intention to interfere with the election and challenged the US to provide evidence.
This statement comes amid heightened tensions between Washington and Tehran, particularly regarding the US’s efforts to prevent a retaliatory strike on Israel over the assassination of Hamas official Ismail Haniyeh. An Israeli operation in southern Beirut last month resulted in the death of Hezbollah’s top commander. Although Tehran and Iran-backed Hezbollah have vowed retaliation, no strikes have occurred as diplomatic efforts and Gaza cease-fire talks continue in Qatar.
The US did not detail its methods for concluding that Iran was responsible for the hacks or describe the specific nature of any information obtained from the Trump campaign. However, the statement indicated that the intelligence community is confident that Iran has sought access to individuals with direct involvement in both political parties’ presidential campaigns through social engineering and other means.
At least three staffers from the Biden-Harris campaign were targeted with phishing emails, though investigators have found no evidence of a successful breach, as reported by The Associated Press last week.
“Such activity, including thefts and disclosures, are intended to influence the US election process. It is important to note that this approach is not new. Iran and Russia have employed these tactics not only in the United States during this and prior federal election cycles but also in other countries around the world,” the statement continued.
The Trump campaign, on August 10, disclosed that it had been hacked, noting that Iranian operatives had stolen and distributed sensitive internal documents. Confidential material, including a report vetting JD Vance as a vice-presidential candidate, ended up being leaked to news outlets such as Politico, The New York Times, and The Washington Post. So far, these outlets have refused to reveal specific details of what they received. The incident allegedly encompassed the unauthorized acquisition of confidential files, which included documents pertaining to the assessment of Trump’s vice presidential candidate, JD Vance which were later disseminated to members of the press.
Vice President Kamala Harris’ presidential campaign disclosed last week that the FBI had informed them last month of attempted hackings “In July, the campaign legal and security teams were notified by the FBI that we were targeted by a foreign actor influence operation,” a Harris campaign official told AFP. However, the campaign added, “We have robust cybersecurity measures in place and are not aware of any security breaches from these efforts.”
In early October, Microsoft issued a report outlining foreign agents’ attempts to meddle in this year’s election. It mentioned an instance where an Iranian military intelligence unit sent a spear-phishing email to a high-ranking official of a presidential campaign through a compromised email account of a former senior advisor.
Additionally, Google reported that an Iranian group linked to the country’s Revolutionary Guard has attempted to infiltrate the personal email accounts of approximately a dozen individuals associated with President Joe Biden and Trump since May.