Intelligence officials have issued a stern warning that Iran is actively attempting to hack both Republican and Democratic presidential campaigns, with recent reports confirming that Donald Trump’s campaign has already been compromised.
This revelation comes from a joint statement released on Monday by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI), the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA).
The statement highlights an escalation in Iranian cyber activities during this election cycle, focusing on influence operations aimed at the American public and direct cyberattacks on presidential campaigns.
The Intelligence Community (IC) has attributed these activities to Iran, noting that the country has used social engineering and other tactics to infiltrate individuals with access to key campaign information. These efforts are seen as an attempt to influence the U.S. election process, a strategy previously employed by both Iran and Russia in past U.S. elections and globally.
The FBI, as the lead agency for threat response, has been closely monitoring the situation, maintaining contact with the victims, and continuing to gather intelligence to disrupt the responsible threat actors.
In response to these allegations, Iran’s Mission to the United Nations has denied any involvement, calling the accusations “unsubstantiated and devoid of any standing.” They challenged the U.S. government to provide evidence if it genuinely believes in the claims.
