FBI Probes Trump Campaign’s Claims Of Hacked Files Amid Election Security Concerns

Authorities launched an investigation into allegations that the Trump campaign was targeted in a hacking operation, FBI said Monday.

The alleged hacking were allegedly orchestrated by Iranian actors, according to claims made by the campaign. This development follows reports from major news outlets like Politico, The Washington Post and The New York Times, which reported receiving files allegedly stolen from the Trump campaign, NBC News reported.

There are new concerns surrounding election security after the Trump campaign claimed over the weekend that it was hacked. The FBI has now confirmed it is investigating.@nicolesganga has the latest on what we know, and what’s still unknown, about the alleged hack: pic.twitter.com/94Xochbmdy

— CBS News (@CBSNews) August 12, 2024

The investigation came after Microsoft identified a hacking attempt that involved a phishing email sent from the compromised account of a former senior adviser to a presidential campaign to another top adviser. The specifics of the phishing attempt’s success and the target campaign were not disclosed by Microsoft, the outlet stated. (RELATED: Trump Campaign Says It Has Been Hacked By ‘Foreign Sources Hostile To The United States’)

The Trump campaign has been hesitant to fully cooperate with federal investigations, possibly due to strained relations between former President Donald Trump and federal law enforcement agencies. Chris Krebs, a former Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency director, pointed out the potential national security implications of such reluctance.

“There may not be a desire to collaborate all that much,” Krebs said. “That, unfortunately, can impede — from a national security perspective — our understanding of the event and what’s happening.”

First, the Intelligence Community should move with great alacrity to declassify and disclose any appropriate information it has concerning the potential foreign nature of this interference.

Transparency is still our best deterrent against foreign influence operations.

— Adam Schiff (@RepAdamSchiff) August 10, 2024

As international tensions continue to influence U.S. politics, former officials and cybersecurity experts stress the need for transparency and immediate action by intelligence agencies to counteract foreign interference and disinformation efforts effectively. This stance is echoed by Democratic California Rep. Adam Schiff, who urges the Intelligence Community to promptly declassify and share any relevant information to help safeguard against foreign influence.

“Intelligence Community should move with great alacrity to declassify and disclose any appropriate information it has concerning the potential foreign nature of this interference,” Schiff wrote on Twitter. “Transparency is still our best deterrent against foreign influence operations.”