Recently, Google confirmed that Iranian-backed hackers targeted the campaigns of US presidential rivals Kamala Harris and Donald Trump. The hacking group known as “APT42” is linked to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and has attacked high-profile individuals and organizations in Israel and the United States, including government officials and political campaigns.
Both Harris and Trump’s campaigns were targeted by foreign hackers. The FBI notified Harris’ campaign of a foreign actor influence operation in July. Google’s threat analysis unit has seen attempts by APT42 to compromise the personal accounts of individuals associated with President Joe Biden, Vice President Harris, and Trump. The group uses phishing attempts to gather login details for accounts like Gmail.
Despite attempts to hack the 2020 campaigns of Biden and Trump, Google was able to thwart APT42’s efforts. The US State Department warned Iran of the consequences of election meddling after the Trump campaign was hacked, with private documents being released.
Google advised high-risk individuals connected to the upcoming election to remain vigilant. The situation is reminiscent of the 2016 election when US intelligence concluded that Russia interfered to support Trump.