Iran was behind the hacking of Donald Trump’s presidential campaign, US intelligence officials said on Monday. The agency further accused Tehran of trying to influence the US Presidential Polls 2024 and shaping the outcome of elections. Besides, targeting the Trump campaign, officials suspect that Iran also attempted to hack into Kamala Harris’s presidential campaign. 

This is the first time any U.S. government has officially attributed responsibility for hacks that have reignited concerns over foreign interference in elections, according to an assessment by the FBI and other federal agencies.  

According to AP, the federal agency believes that Iran is determined to “complicate the ability of any U.S. administration to pursue a foreign policy at odds” with its own interests. The aim is to create confusion, weaken trust in democratic systems, and influence elections that Iran sees as important for its national security. 

“We have observed increasingly aggressive Iranian activity during this election cycle, specifically involving influence operations targeting the American public and cyber operations targeting Presidential campaigns,” read the statement by the FBI, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency. 

However, Iran’s mission to the United Nations denied any involvement in the hacks, stating that Iran had no motive or intention to interfere in the election, and called on the U.S. to provide proof.  

The statement was issued amid heightened tensions between Washington and Tehran, as the US seeks to prevent or limit a potential retaliatory strike on Israel following the assassination of Hamas official Ismail Haniyeh.  

The US did not specify how it determined that Iran was responsible, nor did it disclose what, if any, information was taken from the Trump campaign, but asserted that the intelligence community was confident in its assessment.