Iran tried to influence US presidential election with messages to Biden’s team: FBI

Malicious cyber actors sent unsolicited emails to Biden's team who was then involved in his re-election campaign and the text was stolen from former President Trump’s campaign.

By: Express Web Desk

September 19, 2024 05:01 AM IST

2 min read

The US presidential election is scheduled for November 5 and Iran had earlier denied the reports of any kind of interference in the US election. (Representative image)

Iranian hackers tried to influence the US presidential election in June by sending emails to the team of President Joe Biden’s then re-election campaign while the hackers stole materials from Republican nominee Donald Trump’s campaign, the US law enforcement agencies said on Wednesday.

The US presidential election is scheduled for November 5 and Iran had earlier denied the reports of any kind of interference in the US election.

The FBI, Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency and Office of the Director of National Intelligence, in a joint statement said, “Furthermore, Iranian malicious cyber actors have continued their efforts since June to send stolen, non-public material associated with former President Trump’s campaign to U.S. media organizations.”

Also Read | US presidential election a prime target for foreign disinformation: Intelligence officials

When asked for a comment on the hacking revelation, Iran’s permanent mission to the United Nations in New York didn’t respond, according to Reuters.

President Joe Biden dropped out of the presidential race and endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris to compete against Republican nominee Donald Trump as the voices in the Democratic Party grew for Biden to step aside after the horrifying June 27 debate on CNN with Trump.

Also Read | US Presidential elections: The challenge before the Democrats

The Harris campaign, in a statement said, “We’re not aware of any material being sent directly to the campaign; a few individuals were targeted on their personal emails with what looked like a spam or phishing attempt.”

Malicious cyber actors sent unsolicited emails to Biden’s team who was then involved in his re-election campaign and the text was stolen from former President Trump’s campaign, according to the agency’s statement.

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