US intelligence: Foreign hackers spying on campaigns

WASHINGTON (AP) — The United States sees evidence that hackers, possibly working for foreign governments, are snooping on the presidential candidates, the nation's intelligence chief said Wednesday.

Hacking was rampant in 2008, according to U.S. intelligence officials, and both President Barack Obama and Mitt Romney were targets of Chinese cyberattacks four years later.

The revelation comes after a Clapper's office released a document earlier this month saying foreign intelligence services tracked the 2008 presidential election cycle "like no other."

The document was part of a slide show used to warn incoming Obama administration officials that their new jobs could make them prey for foreign spies.

Eight years ago, foreign intelligence services "met with campaign contacts and staff, used human source networks for policy insights, exploited technology to get otherwise sensitive data, engaged in perception management to influence policy," the document said.

Several weeks ago, the international group of activists and hackers known as Anonymous declared cyberwar on Donald Trump, urging supporters to take down his website and expose private information.

The New York billionaire probably has the largest "attack surface" of all of the candidates, said John Dickson, a partner in the Denim Group, a San Antonio developer of secure software.

V. Newton Miller, chief executive officer of the Milwaukee-based PKWARE, which provides encryption software and advises federal agencies on data security, said foreign spying on campaign sites was inevitable.

Foreign hackers are more interested in sensitive, revealing campaign emails and reports, especially with the unprecedented mudslinging of this campaign, rather than acts of cyber vandalism, Miller and other experts said.