Trump Criticizes "Evidence of Biden-Iran Cooperation"
Iranian hackers, emerging as one of the biggest threats to the upcoming U.S. presidential election in November, are believed to have hacked into former President Donald Trump's camp's confidential materials last summer and sent them to President Joe Biden's camp.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), and Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) announced in a joint statement on the 18th (local time) that Iranian hackers sent emails to Biden campaign officials between late June and early July, which included excerpts of confidential texts from the Trump campaign. However, they added that there was no indication that Biden campaign officials responded.
The FBI stated, "(This hacking is) one of several attempts by the Iranian government to sow discord in the U.S. and undermine trust in the election process," and revealed that they have been sending the hacked Trump campaign materials to U.S. media outlets since June. CNN confirmed that it, along with Politico, The New York Times (NYT), and The Washington Post (WP), received confidential documents via email, including reports on J.D. Vance, former President Trump's running mate.
Former President Trump, during a rally held in New York State that day, claimed, "This is genuine foreign election interference," and asserted, "Iranian hackers handed over all the materials to them (Biden camp officials) because Biden cooperated with Iran." Caroline Libby, a spokesperson for the Trump campaign, also issued a statement saying, "(Harris and Biden) need to honestly admit whether they used the hacked materials," and criticized, "This is further evidence that Iran is actively interfering in the election to ensure the Democratic candidate's victory."
With less than 50 days remaining until the U.S. presidential election, warnings about election interference by hostile nations including Iran are growing louder. Earlier, on the 19th of last month, the FBI, ODNI, and CISA jointly stated that "Iran's operations to exacerbate political divisions in American society have intensified ahead of the November election," identifying Iran as behind hacking attempts targeting both the Republican and Democratic presidential campaigns. Microsoft (MS) and OpenAI recently reported that at least five websites suspected to be Iranian intelligence operations appeared, producing negative content about former President Trump. Additionally, emails of Roger Stone, a longtime adviser to Trump, were reportedly hacked by Iranian operatives.
Meanwhile, a spokesperson for Iran's Permanent Mission to the United Nations told CBS, "Iran has no motive or intention to interfere in the U.S. election," fully denying the allegations. Politico cited sources reporting that the U.S. Department of Justice is preparing criminal charges related to the Iranian hacking incident targeting the Trump campaign. However, specific details such as the targets and timing of the indictment have not yet been disclosed.
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
