Donald Trump’s presidential campaign has claimed that it was the victim of a cyberattack and suggested that Iranian-linked actors may have been behind the breach.
The announcement came after Politico reported receiving internal campaign materials, including information about Ohio Senator JD Vance, who was selected as Trump’s running mate. A campaign spokesperson told the BBC that the documents appeared to have been obtained by foreign actors attempting to influence the 2024 US presidential election.
While Politico confirmed that the documents were authentic, neither the BBC nor independent sources have verified who was responsible for the breach. The Trump campaign has not released direct evidence proving that the Iranian government or specific Iranian hackers carried out the attack.
A Microsoft report released shortly before the claims revealed that the campaign of an unnamed US presidential candidate had been targeted by hackers in June. Microsoft’s Threat Analysis Center said the attackers used a “spear-phishing” email — a deceptive message designed to trick recipients into clicking harmful links or revealing sensitive information.
The report noted that Iranian cyber influence activities have increased in recent months.
Trump campaign spokesperson Steven Cheung connected the attack to the period when Trump was selecting his vice-presidential candidate. He cited Microsoft’s findings and accused Iran of attempting to interfere with the election.
According to Politico, emails from an AOL account using the name “Robert” began arriving in late July. One of the leaked files reportedly contained a 271-page report on JD Vance, based largely on publicly available information about his statements and political history. The messages also included references to a report on Florida Senator Marco Rubio, another person considered for the vice-presidential role.
Political campaigns commonly conduct background research on potential running mates to identify possible risks. The report on Vance reportedly highlighted previous criticisms he had made of Trump as potential vulnerabilities.
Microsoft has previously warned that Iranian cyber operations have been involved in attempts to influence multiple US election cycles. The company also reported similar activity during the 2020 presidential election.
Separately, US officials have reportedly raised concerns about an alleged Iranian plot targeting Trump, unrelated to the attempted shooting at a campaign event in Pennsylvania. The US Department of Justice has charged a Pakistani citizen with alleged connections to Iran over an alleged plan to target US officials.
Iranian officials have been contacted for comment regarding the accusations.