An Iranian hacking group has made good on a previous threat by releasing pilfered e-mails related to the campaign for Republican U. S. presidential candidate Donald Trump reportedly after failing previously to attract strong attention from mainstream media. The hacking group recently leaked the emails to a Democratic operative, who released the contents through his political action committee, American Muckrakers, and on other sites, such as Substack, through independent journalists. The leaked communications expose all the chatter among Trump’s campaign team, external advisors, and allies about several issues that had been building up ahead of the 2024 election.
The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) had indicted three Iranian nationals affiliated with the Iran government-tied hacking collective known as Mint Sandstorm, alternatively known as APT42, last week for committing cybercrimes against Trump’s campaign staff during the months of May and June. The hackers, who are allegedly affiliated with Iran’s Basij paramilitary force, allegedly stole passwords from the campaign accounts in order to gain access. Conviction can result in imprisonment and fines.
Though the hackers, who worked under the identity “Robert,” didn’t mention DOJ’s accusations, one member of the group was puzzled about this kind of requirement to respond.
The FBI, which probe into alleged Iranian interference in both two major U. S. presidential campaigns, identifies “Robert” as the persona within the DOJ’s charges.
Iran‘s delegation to the UN was dismissive of claims that government-backed hacking aimed at US interests preceded revelations that hackers seen to have ties to Iran had placed their campaign’s funds in a bank in Panama. elections, describing them as “fundamentally unfounded and wholly inadmissible. ” Meanwhile, David Wheeler, founder of American Muckrakers, which published some of the hacked emails, described the documents as legitimate and as being in the public interest. He would not comment on their origin, but called his goal “expose how desperate the Trump campaign is to try to win” while giving the public fact.”.
The Trump campaign condemned reported hacking as an effort “to interfere with the 2024 election and sow chaos throughout our democratic process,” warning journalists not to publish leaked documents. This was a far cry from Trump’s 2016 plea to Russia to hack into and publish Clinton’s emails.
