The former US president’s team claims Iranian cybercriminals stole internal documents with the goal of influencing the 2024 election
Former US President Donald Trump’s election campaign team has said it has had internal emails and documents stolen by “foreign sources,” who are allegedly attempting to “sow chaos” and influence the upcoming American presidential vote.
Politico reported on Saturday that it had begun receiving emails over the past month from an anonymous person, only known as ‘Robert,’ which contained documents from the Trump campaign. These allegedly included a 271-page vetting report on the Republican nominee’s running mate, Ohio Senator J.D. Vance, as well as a dossier on Florida Senator Macro Rubio, who was also being considered for the vice presidential nomination.
’Robert’ also reportedly told Politico that he possesses a “variety” of Trump’s “legal and court documents” as well as “internal campaign discussions.”
Asked about how they had obtained the documents, the person told the outlet that “any answer to this question will compromise me and also legally restrict” Politico from publishing them.
Trump campaign spokesperson Steven Cheung said the documents seen by Politico had been “obtained illegally from foreign sources hostile to the United States,” and that these sources intended to “interfere with the 2024 election and sow chaos throughout our democratic process.”
Cheung warned that “any media or news outlet reprinting documents or internal communications are doing the bidding of America’s enemies,” while suggesting that the documents may have been stolen by Iranian hackers.
The spokesman pointed to a Microsoft report on Friday that warned about a “spear phishing email” sent in June by hackers associated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps to “high ranking officials on a presidential campaign.” Cheung noted that Microsoft’s report “coincides with the close timing of President Trump’s selection of a vice presidential nominee.”
“The Iranians know that President Trump will stop their reign of terror just like he did in his first four years in the White House,” Cheung said.
Iran’s permanent mission to the UN has denied the Trump campaign’s allegations in a statement to Reuters, writing that “the Iranian government neither possesses nor harbors any intent or motive to interfere in the United States Presidential election.”
