Trump campaign says internal communications were hacked, including Vance 'dossier,' by foreign sources
The campaign noted that the hacking comes after reports of an Iranian plot to assassinate former President Trump
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Former President Trump's campaign confirmed to Fox News on Saturday that some of its internal communications were hacked.
Liberal media outlet Politico had reached out to the campaign after the news outlet started receiving internal Trump documents.
"These documents were obtained illegally from foreign sources hostile to the United States, intended to interfere with the 2024 election and sow chaos throughout our Democratic process," said Steven Cheung, communications director for the Trump campaign.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"On Friday, a new report from Microsoft found that Iranian hackers broke into the account of a ‘high ranking official’ on the U.S. presidential campaign in June 2024, which coincides with the close timing of President Trump’s selection of a Vice Presidential nominee," he added.
Former President Trump's campaign confirmed to Fox News on Saturday that some of its internal communications were hacked. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images)
Cheung noted that the hack allegedly by Iran came, "after recent reports of an Iranian plot to assassinate President Trump around the same time as the Butler, PA tragedy."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}He added: "The Iranians know that President Trump will stop their reign of terror just like he did in his first four years in the White House. Any media or news outlet reprinting documents or internal communications are doing the bidding of America’s enemies and doing exactly what they want."
The documents sent to Politico included a 271-page "dossier" the Trump campaign had put together on his eventual running mate Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, that dated back to February, the outlet said.
It included Vance's past stances on issues, statements and previous criticisms of Trump in a section called "POTENTIAL VULNERABILITIES."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The Trump campaign didn't say if they had contacted law enforcement over the hacking.
The documents sent to Politico included a 271-page "dossier" the Trump campaign had put together on his eventual running mate Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, that dated back to February, the outlet said. (Ryan Collerd/AFP via Getty Images)
It was not immediately clear if Politico used any of the hacked material in its reporting. Fox News Digital has reached out to Politico who referred back to their story.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The outlet reported that it began receiving emails from someone identifying themselves as "Robert" using an anonymous AOL account on July 22, just days after the Republican National Convention ended and Trump announced Vance as his running mate.
"I suggest you don’t be curious about where I got them from," the person reportedly told Politico when reporters asked how "Robert" obtained the documents. "Any answer to this question, will compromise me and also legally restricts you from publishing them."
"These documents were obtained illegally from foreign sources hostile to the United States, intended to interfere with the 2024 election and sow chaos throughout our Democratic process," said Steven Cheung, communications director for the Trump campaign. (Bill Pugliano/Getty Images)
"Robert" also sent documents on Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., who was reportedly considered as Trump's vice presidential pick, and claimed he had a "variety of documents from [Trump’s] legal and court documents to internal campaign discussions."
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The Democratic Party and Hillary Clinton campaign were infamously hacked during the 2016 election, with the U.S. putting the blame on Russia. Some of the documents were released by WikiLeaks.