US Intelligence Agencies: Iran Behind Hacking Incidents Targeting Trump and Harris Campaigns

U.S. intelligence agencies have identified Iran as the culprit behind hacking incidents targeting the Trump presidential campaign and the Biden-Harris campaign, AP News reported on the 19th (local time).

On the same day, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI), and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) issued a joint statement saying, "We have observed an increase in aggressive Iranian activities ahead of the election," adding, "This includes operations targeting U.S. citizens and cyber operations targeting presidential campaigns."

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

They pointed to Iran as responsible for the recent hacking attempts on the Trump campaign. The authorities did not provide detailed explanations regarding the basis for concluding that Iran was behind the hacking incidents or about the government information stolen from the Trump campaign by the hackers. However, they stated, "We are confident that Iran attempted to hack individuals with direct access to both parties' campaigns."

The statement said, "These activities are intended to influence the U.S. election process," and added, "Iran and Russia have used such tactics not only in this and previous U.S. elections but also in other countries around the world."

On the 10th, the Trump campaign announced that it had been hacked by a foreign hostile entity. On the 9th, Microsoft (MS) revealed that hackers linked to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) attempted email phishing targeting senior officials of presidential campaigns. This led to speculation that the leak incident involving the Trump campaign was the work of Iran.

Additionally, AP News reported that at least three staff members of the Biden-Harris campaign were targeted by phishing emails recently. Investigators stated that no evidence of information theft resulting from this was found.

Meanwhile, Iran's mission to the United Nations denied these claims as "baseless," stating that Iran has neither the motive nor the intention to interfere in the U.S. election. They also demanded that the U.S. present evidence and said they would respond accordingly.