Trump Campaign Hack: Justice Department To File Criminal Charges Against Iran

The Justice Department is preparing to file criminal charges in an alleged Iranian hack that targeted former President Trump's campaign, according to media reports. The charges are part of an effort to combat covert foreign influence activities aimed at influencing voters in the 2024 election cycle.

The Justice Department is preparing to file criminal charges in an alleged Iranian hack that targeted former President Trump's campaign, according to media reports. The Associated Press reported it wasn't immediately clear who would be charged, but that it would be the result of an investigation into intrusion and multiple agencies linked to an Iranian effort to influence this year’s U.S. presidential election.

The expected charges are part of an effort to combat covert foreign influence activities aimed at influencing voters in the 2024 election cycle. Iran "is making a greater effort to influence this year’s election than it has in prior election cycles, and that Iranian activity is growing increasingly aggressive as this election nears," Assistant Attorney General Matthew Olsen, the Justice Department’s top national security official, said in a speech Thursday in New York. "Iran perceives this year’s elections to be particularly consequential in impacting Iran’s national security interests, increasing Tehran’s inclination to try to shape the outcome."

Trump Campaign Hack: Justice Department to File Criminal Charges Against Iran

U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland speaks at the Department of Justice in Washington, D.C. The DOJ is preparing charges against Iran over its alleged efforts to influence the 2024 election cycle. (Ting Shen/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

The Justice Department has warned of nations like Russia and China trying to meddle in the presidential race between Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris. Some of the efforts include hacking and using social media to influence public opinion.

Trump Campaign Hack: Justice Department to File Criminal Charges Against Iran

In August, the Trump campaign said Iranians had stolen sensitive documents through hacking. The FBI, the office of the Director of National Intelligence and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency blamed that hack, as well as an attempted breach of the Biden-Harris campaign, on Iran.

"The IC is confident that the Iranians have, through social engineering and other efforts, sought access to individuals with direct access to the presidential campaigns of both political parties," a joint statement said at the time.

Trump Campaign Hack: Justice Department to File Criminal Charges Against Iran

"Such activity, including thefts and disclosures, are intended to influence the U.S. election process," the statement added. "It is important to note that this approach is not new. Iran and Russia have employed these tactics not only in the United States during this and prior federal election cycles but also in other countries around the world."

The statement didn't say whether Iran prefers one candidate over another, but Trump has long been considered a target by Tehran after he ordered a 2020 strike that killed Iranian Lt. Gen. Qassem Soleimani, head of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Quds Forces.