Different countries seem to be picking sides.
Long-Range Phishing
Multiple groups of foreign hackers reportedly have their sights trained on the 2020 U.S. Presidential election, according to a Google cybersecurity researcher.
Both major political parties' nominees have been targeted, The Verge reports. But different countries are targeting different candidates: state-backed hackers from China targeted Biden staffers, while hackers from Iran targeted the Trump campaign.
Swing And Miss
The news comes from Shane Huntley, the head of Google's Threat Analysis Group. He tweeted that Google had identified both groups' phishing attempts, but that there was no sign the hackers had been successful.
Recently TAG saw China APT group targeting Biden campaign staff & Iran APT targeting Trump campaign staff with phishing. No sign of compromise. We sent users our govt attack warning and we referred to fed law enforcement. https://t.co/ozlRL4SwhG
— Shane Huntley (@ShaneHuntley) June 4, 2020
"We have known from the beginning of our campaign that we would be subject to such attacks and we are prepared for them," Matt Hill, the deputy national press secretary for the Biden campaign, told The Verge. The Trump campaign didn't respond to The Verge's request for comment.
Repeated Strike
Foreign hackers have targeted U.S. Presidential candidates several times in the past, The Verge reports.
Just last year, Iranian hackers seemingly tried and failed to breach the Trump campaigns' emails, while what appear to have been Russian hackers successfully phished and accessed the 2016 Democratic National Committee's emails.
All in all, it seems as though the threat will persist.
READ MORE: Google says foreign hackers targeted emails of Trump and Biden campaign staffers [The Verge]
More on election security: Congressman: The 2020 Election Is Not Safe From Hackers
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