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Microsoft: Foreign hackers are targeting Biden and Trump camps

September 10, 2020 at 8:36 pm

Microsoft logo on 19 July, 2018 [Aytaç Ünal/Anadolu Agency]

Hackers linked to Russia, China, and Iran are trying to spy on people tied to both President Donald Trump and Democratic challenger Joe Biden, Microsoft Corp said Thursday, Reuters reports.

The report follows a Reuters story revealing that one of Biden’s main campaign advisory firms had been warned by the software giant that it was in the crosshairs of suspected Russian hackers.

The Microsoft statement highlights how advisors to both presidential campaigns are at risk from digital spies from around the globe, as the two candidates face off on Nov.3 in one of the most consequential US presidential elections for decades.

The announcement by Microsoft’s Vice President for customer security Tom Burt, says the same group of Russian cyberspies who intervened in the 2016 US election had spent the past year trying to break into accounts belonging to political consultants serving both Republicans and Democrats as well as advocacy organizations and think tanks.

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Burt also said Chinese hackers had gone after people “closely associated with US presidential campaigns and candidates” – including an unnamed Biden ally who was targeted at their personal email address and “at least one prominent individual formerly associated with the Trump Administration.”

He added that Iranian hackers – which Microsoft has already called out publicly for attempts to spy on the Trump administration – had tried to log into accounts belonging to Trump administration officials and members of the Republican president’s campaign staff.

Microsoft’s announcement was planned before Reuters broke the news that hackers targeted Washington-based SKDKnickerbocker, a campaign strategy and communications firm working with Biden and other prominent Democrats.

Burt did not name any of the political consultants involved and Microsoft declined to comment on whether SKDK was among the consultants it had identified as targets.