Sen. Lindsey Graham’s phone may have been hacked.
The South Carolinian Republican told attendees of the Hill & Valley Forum on AI Security on Wednesday that his phone is now “in the hands of the FBI.”
The alleged hacker, Graham explained, impersonated Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and left him a message.
“So I get a message, I think, from Schumer,” he said. “It ain’t from Schumer.”
“Next thing you know, my phones — Anything you can create apparently can be hacked,” he stated.
(Video: YouTube)
Graham’s spokesperson, Taylor Reidy, confirmed the investigation.
“The [Senate] Sergeant at Arms is investigating a possible hack of Senator Graham’s phone,” Reidy told CNN.
The Senate Sergeant at Arms sent Senate staffers an email on Monday, warning them that “similar hacking attempts were reported on other Senate staff this week,” according to CNN.
“Reports of a text-based phishing attack on Senate mobile devices are increasing,” the email, obtained by CNN, reads. “The message impersonates a trusted source to start a conversation.”
“The hacker then tries to get the target to install the Telegram messaging by clicking on a malicious link that ‘results in the device behaving abnormally,’” according to CNN.
In Graham’s case, a source familiar with the matter told the outlet, the attack was made on his personal phone, not a Senate device or Senate network.
News that Graham’s personal device is now in the hands of the FBI, which declined to comment on the story, is fueling speculation on social media.
“This ought to be interesting,” wrote one user on X.
The FBI just seized Lindsey Graham’s phone.
This ought to be interesting.
— American Warrior for Christ (@johnrackham82) May 5, 2024
“It was not immediately clear who was behind the hacking attempt,” CNN reports, and few online believe anything good will come of the investigation.
“The Deep State pretending to investigate itself,” wrote one user on X, “how adorable.”
“They’re going to find a lot of angrily written letters,” quipped another.
“You must be crazy giving your phone to the FBI,” noted a third. “No telling what they will plant on it.”
The Deep State pretending to investigate itself, how adorable.
— Justin Leeds (@Justin_Leeds33) May 4, 2024
They’re going to find a lot of angrily written letters.
— Jimmy Digs Freedom (@MorisetteJimmy) May 4, 2024
You must be crazy giving your phone to the FBI. No telling what they will plant on it.
— bob (@BcarpenterBob) May 3, 2024
This isn’t the first time members of Congress have been targeted by hackers.
“Lawmakers and their staff face an array of cyber threats, from state-backed spies to cybercriminals,” according to CNN. “One risk with hacking activity like what Graham experienced is that it is an attempt to gain broader access to targets in the Senate for future operations, the source said.
“Hundreds of House and Senate staff, along with some lawmakers, had their sensitive personal information, such as Social Security numbers, stolen in a separate hack last year of a DC health insurance service.”
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Author: Melissa Fine
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