The US Department of Justice has announced criminal charges for three Iranian hackers involved in a ‘wide ranging hacking campaign’ primarily targeting former President Trump’s campaign documents, which were then leaked to the press.

Court documents outlined that hackers used spear phishing and social engineering techniques in order to compromise accounts belonging to members of the media, US government officials, and campaign staffers.

The individuals accused were named as Masoud Jalili, Seyyed Ali Aghamiri, and Yasar Balaghi, each facing charges for identity theft, conspiracy to provide material to support a terrorist organization, and more. The DOJ’s indictment attributes the hack to a wider vow for revenge from the Iranian government after the Trump administration killed Iranian general Qasem Soleimani in 2020.

Election interference

The 2024 US election cycle has been the target of repeated attempts by foreign actors to influence voters and spread divisive rhetoric, with both Chinese and Russian state actors found to be spreading online propaganda.

The DOJ says this Iranian campaign is no different, with Attorney General Merrick Garland noting, “we know that Iran is continuing its brazen efforts to stoke discord, erode confidence in the U.S. electoral process, and advance its malign activities to the IRGC, a designated foreign terrorist organization.”

“The American people and the American people alone will decide the outcome of our country’s elections.”

It was recently revealed that although multiple news organizations were sent the leaked materials from the campaign, all chose not to publish the details. The Biden campaign team was also sent the files, but ignored them.

The State Department offered a $10 million reward for information on the three Iranian men involved, who are yet to be apprehended by US officials.

Via The Register

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