A new Google report confirms that Iranian hacking groups targeted the campaigns of former President Trump, as well as those of President Biden and current Vice President Kamala Harris.
Thursday’s report came days after the Trump campaign acknowledged it had been hacked. Google’s report didn’t say whether the Iranian hacking group APT42 was involved in the breach, but it did confirm that the group had at least attempted to break into dozens of email accounts associated with various campaigns, Politico reported Thursday.
Google said it had blocked “numerous” attempts to log into election accounts.
According to the report, Google “continues to observe failed attempts by APT42 to compromise accounts of individuals associated with President Biden, Vice President Harris, and former President Trump, including current and former government officials and campaign associates.”
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Google has confirmed that Iranian hackers have targeted former President Trump’s 2024 election campaign. (Felipe Ramares for Fox News Digital)
The report added that APT42 “successfully gained access” to the account of a prominent political consultant, but did not reveal the person’s identity.
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The report comes shortly after the FBI announced earlier this week that it was investigating the hacking attack on the Trump campaign. The allegation of Iranian involvement comes 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.”
Google says Iran has launched an effort to infiltrate Vice President Kamala Harris’ campaign following her election as the Democratic nominee. (Erin Shaff/Pool via Reuters)
“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.
A Pakistani man with ties to Iran has been charged with thwarting a possible assassination plot against President Trump, the Justice Department announced.
But Iran has long been suspected of conducting hacking operations targeting its enemies in the Middle East and elsewhere. Iran has also threatened to retaliate for the killing of Revolutionary Guard Gen. Qassem Soleimani in a drone strike ordered by President Trump in 2020.
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has vowed to exact revenge on President Trump for the 2020 drone strike that killed General Qassem Soleimani. (Office of the Iranian Supreme Leader via The Associated Press)
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“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.
