Donald Trump’s presidential campaign’s emails hacked, team managers claim Iran behind attack

Former President Donald Trump’s presidential campaign has claimed that it was hacked, pointing to Iranian actors as possible culprits. The campaign did not present specific evidence linking Iran to the breach, but the claim coincided with a report from Microsoft detailing foreign attempts to interfere in the 2024 US election.

Microsoft’s report highlighted an incident in June 2024, where an Iranian military intelligence unit allegedly sent a spear-phishing email to a senior official in a US presidential campaign using a compromised email account.

This type of phishing attack involves tricking the recipient into clicking on a malicious link or attachment, potentially allowing the attackers to gain access to sensitive information.

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Trump campaign spokesperson Steven Cheung blamed the hack on “foreign sources hostile to the United States” and warned that any media outlet that republishes the stolen documents would be aiding America’s adversaries.

The National Security Council stated that it takes any reports of foreign interference seriously but deferred to the Justice Department for further investigation.

Iran’s mission to the United Nations denied involvement in the hack, dismissing the allegations. However, Iran has long been suspected of conducting hacking campaigns against its perceived enemies, including the US The Trump campaign’s accusation adds to the tension, especially given Iran’s longstanding animosity towards Trump, who ordered the 2020 drone strike that killed Iranian General Qassem Soleimani.

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This development also follows recent criminal charges by the US Justice Department against a Pakistani national with ties to Iran, accused of plotting assassination attempts against American political figures, including Trump. The case underlined Iran’s alleged intent to retaliate for Soleimani’s killing.

Politico reported that it had received an email from an anonymous source containing what appeared to be a research dossier from Trump’s campaign about Ohio Senator JD Vance, who was recently selected as Trump’s running mate. The campaign condemned the leak as an illegal act intended to disrupt the 2024 election.

Microsoft’s report claimed that Iranian cyber operations have been consistently trying to interfere with the last three US election cycles, with their activities becoming more pronounced later in the election season. The report also suggested that Iran, along with Russia, might be actively engaging in efforts to influence the 2024 election.