The Trump campaign said on Saturday that its internal communications had been hacked by a hostile foreign entity.
Former President Donald Trump’s campaign, in a statement to the Daily Caller News Foundation, blamed “foreign sources hostile to the United States” for the hack and pointed toward a Microsoft intelligence report released Friday that claimed hackers affiliated with the Iranian armed forces had “sent a spear-phishing email to a high-ranking official of a presidential campaign” in June. The hacker, which the Trump campaign alleges to be an Iranian operative, shared the stolen information with Politico starting in late July, the outlet reported.
“I suggest you don’t be curious about where I got them from,” the individual, who identified themselves as “Robert” and used an AOL email address, told Politico. “Any answer to this question, will compromise me and also legally restricts you from publishing them.”
Politico gave some insight into what was in the communications handed off by the hacker, reporting that in addition to internal Trump campaign communications it had received a large document containing research conducted as part of the Trump campaign’s vetting process of Republican vice presidential nominee J.D. Vance.
“These documents were obtained illegally from foreign sources hostile to the United States, intended to interfere with the 2024 election and sow chaos throughout our Democratic process,” Trump campaign spokesperson Steven Cheung told the DCNF. “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 that the timeline of the hack included in the Microsoft report “coincides with the close timing of President Trump’s selection of a vice presidential nominee.”
It is unclear if Politico plans to publish more of what it received from the hacker. The outlet did not immediately respond to the DCNF’s request for comment.
“Any media or news outlet reprinting documents or internal communications are doing the bidding of America’s enemies and doing exactly what they want,” Cheung told the DCNF.
Earlier this year, the U.S. reportedly obtained intelligence indicating that the Iranian government was plotting to assassinate Trump, prompting the Secret Service to beef up their security of the former president.
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