The FBI has announced that it is investigating an Iranian cyber-hacking attempt against former US President Donald Trump’s 2024 presidential election campaign.
“The FBI is investigating the recent cyber intrusion into the Trump campaign,” the bureau said in a statement to Fox News. “We can confirm that the FBI is investigating.”
Vice President Kamala Harris’ 2024 campaign told Fox News that the company “closely monitors and defends against cyber threats and is not aware of any breaches of our systems.”
Republican presidential candidate and former president Donald Trump speaks at a campaign rally in Charlotte, North Carolina, Wednesday, July 24, 2024. (AP Photo/Matt Kelly)
The allegations of Iranian involvement came shortly after Microsoft released a report detailing attempts by foreign agents to interfere in the 2024 US election campaign.
The report cites an instance in June when Iranian military intelligence units “sent spear phishing emails to senior presidential campaign officials from a compromised email account of a former senior adviser.”
Politico reported Saturday that the emails began arriving on July 22 from an anonymous account, originating from an AOL email account identified only as “Robert.”
Harris campaign posts denying false claim that Trump called the neo-Nazis in Charlottesville “very fine people”
“These documents were illegally obtained from foreign sources hostile to the United States and were intended to interfere in the 2024 election and sow chaos throughout the Democratic electoral process,” Trump campaign spokesman Steven Chang said.
When asked about the Trump campaign’s claims, Iran’s mission to the United Nations denied any involvement.
But Iran has long been suspected of conducting hacking operations targeting its enemies in the Middle East and elsewhere, and Tehran has also long threatened to retaliate against the drone strike ordered by President Trump that killed Revolutionary Guard Gen. Qassem Soleimani in 2020.
Republican presidential candidate and former president Donald Trump speaks at a campaign rally in Grand Rapids, Michigan, Saturday, July 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
“Foreign malign influence efforts regarding the 2024 U.S. elections began slowly but have steadily gained momentum over the past six months, driven initially by Russian activity and more recently by Iranian activity,” Microsoft said in the report.
The analysis continues: “Iranian cyber influence operations have been a consistent feature of at least the past three U.S. election cycles. Iranian activity is distinctive from Russian activity in that it emerged later in the election season and launched cyber attacks that were focused on electioneering rather than voter mobilization.”
Click here to get the FOX News app
“Recent activity suggests that the Iranian regime, as well as the Kremlin, may be interfering with the 2024 elections,” Microsoft concluded.
Fox News’ Jake Gibson and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
