The American countryside is being closely scrutinized. Even from the inside, since Chinese hackers are accused by Washington of having targeted the data of the phones used by former President Donald Trump and his running mate, Ohio Senator JD Vance, reported Friday October 25 , the daily The New York Times. Others, outside or within government, are also affected by these intrusions.
“The United States government is investigating unauthorized access to commercial telecommunications infrastructure by actors linked to the People’s Republic of China,” responded the FBI and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) in a joint press release. The intelligence services were quick to clarify that once the “malicious activity” was identified, they “immediately informed the affected companies and quickly shared information to help other potential victims.”
While national security officials have said they are deeply concerned, they have not yet been able to determine what type of content was revealed. But one thing is certain: the elements from the telephones of the presidential candidate and his running mate would act as a gold mine, a few days before the election.
Call frequency, call duration
Concretely, Chinese hackers could have access to a significant part of the daily lives of the two Republican politicians. Like seeing the contacts they call, how often, the duration of communications… Crucial information that Washington does not want to see fall into the hands of Beijing. “Data on a presidential and vice presidential candidate’s communications – even without the content of the calls and messages – could also help an adversary like China better identify and target those in the circle restricted by Donald Trump for influence operations”, underlines the New York Times. It is also difficult to say whether the hackers were able to access text messages, especially those sent via unencrypted channels.
However, the Republican camp is not the only one to be targeted by these foreign leaks. Indeed, the New York Times confirms that Democrats are also on the list, “including members of Vice President Kamala Harris’ campaign staff and prominent figures on Capitol Hill, including Sen. Chuck Schumer of New York, the majority leader.”
The Verizon company concerned
One of the companies affected by these hacks is the American telecommunications giant, Verizon, according to the New York Times. In a statement, a spokesperson, Rich Young, said the company was “aware that a highly sophisticated state actor may have targeted multiple U.S. telecommunications providers to gather intelligence.” He assured that his company is actively cooperating with law enforcement in the investigation and working to resolve any subsequent issues.
This is not the first time that ex-billionaire Donald Trump has been the victim of espionage during this campaign. At the end of September, three Iranians suspected of acting on behalf of Tehran were indicted in the United States for computer hacking of Donald Trump’s campaign. “The defendants clearly said they wanted to undermine the ex-president’s campaign for the 2024 election,” Justice Minister Merrick Garland commented at a press conference.
U.S. government agencies and officials have long warned of the threat of foreign interference in the United States, especially since the hacking of Democratic Party emails, attributed to Russia, during the 2016 presidential election. view the American elections as an opportunity to try to influence, to try to undermine confidence in our democracy,” National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said this summer. “We are clear about this. And we are doing a lot to combat this.”