PDB Afternoon Bulletin | October 28th, 2024: Trump Campaign Audio Compromised by Chinese Hack & Pyongyang Speaks on Troops in Russia
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It's Monday, 28 October. Welcome to the PDB Afternoon Bulletin. I'm Mike Baker, your eyes and ears on the world stage. Let's get briefed. First, we have an update on the attempted hacks targeting the Trump and Harris campaigns by Chinese regime operatives. New information reveals that the hackers managed to capture audio from an unnamed Trump advisor.

Then, for the first time, Pyongyang officials are addressing reports concerning thousands of North Korean troops that are reportedly deployed to Russia to back up his pal President Putin's war in Ukraine. We'll bring you the latest on this development.

But first, our afternoon spotlight. Chinese state-affiliated hackers have not only breached the phone systems of U.S. political figures, including former President Trump and his running mate, J.D. Vance, but have successfully intercepted audio from their conversations, and that's according to a new report from The Washington Post. As we previously reported here on the PDB, the

the state-affiliated hackers launched a sophisticated attack targeting Verizon's telecommunications infrastructure, aiming to monitor high-profile figures within and outside of the government. This breach now appears even more severe with the revelation that audio from these phone conversations was captured, significantly escalating, of course, the risk to campaign security and election integrity as the 5 November election approaches.

The Washington Post confirmed Sunday that the hackers accessed audio from a conversation involving an unnamed Trump advisor. Initial reports suggested the potential interception of text messages, but this new information, well, it underscores the depth of the intrusion and emphasizes the vulnerabilities in campaign communication systems, or frankly, anyone's communications systems. Verizon, which first detected the breach, acknowledged the advanced techniques used in this attack,

As a result, senior Trump campaign staff have since been issued new devices following FBI notification. Alongside Trump Advance, President Kamala Harris' campaign has also been impacted with a Reuters report indicating that Harris-affiliated individuals were similarly targeted, pointing to, of course, a broader breach affecting both parties, not just targeting one. They're, you know, they're very inclusive, those Chinese regime hackers.

The FBI and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency have launched an investigation focusing on individuals linked to China. Cybersecurity analysts believe that the operation was conducted by a group known as Salt Typhoon. That's a hacking group tied to the Chinese state, known for creating backdoor access across U.S. telecoms networks, including carriers like AT&T, Verizon, and Lumen.

Now, despite the Chinese embassy in Washington denying involvement, that's a surprise, and reiterating China's stance against cyber theft, yes, the Chinese intel apparatus is definitely against cyber shenanigans. They wouldn't even think about it. Salt Typhoon's actions have obviously raised serious national security alarms. The breach's timing days before the election adds urgency to calls for heightened cybersecurity measures across critical national infrastructure.

Well, okay, look, folks, Elvis has left the building. I mean, if people are just now thinking that it's time to improve cybersecurity within critical infrastructure, well, your critical infrastructure is already screwed.

It's important to note that earlier this year, hackers targeted Trump's campaign, with the Justice Department now pinning the attack on three members of Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps, the IRGC. The trio is accused of attempting to sabotage the presidential election.

With foreign interference expected to increase as Election Day nears, U.S. officials warn that incidents like these illustrate the pressing need for fortified defenses to protect sensitive communications. Well, congratulations to those U.S. officials for being today's winner of the PDB Statement of the Obvious Award. And by the way,

Would it be worth asking, perhaps, the current U.S. administration if they intend to take any punitive measures against the Chinese government for their interference in U.S. elections or against the Iranians or the Russians? I mean, I do remember during the Obama administration that the White House famously declared that Xi Jinping, China's leader, following his meetings with President Obama, had agreed to not engage in cyber espionage or hacking or other tomfoolery.

I'm not saying that anybody with any experience back then actually believed Xi's statement, but shouldn't there be some consequences for bad behavior? Coming up next, Pyongyang denies deploying North Korean troops to Russia, despite NATO confirming their presence for the first time. I'll have the details after the break. Here's a question for you.

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For the first time, Pyongyang is responding to reports that North Korean troops have deployed alongside Russian forces in support of the invasion of Ukraine. Kim Jong-il, vice foreign minister in charge of Russian affairs, told North Korea's state news agency that the reports were a, quote, "...groundless rumor."

He went on to say, quote, if there is such a thing that the world media is talking about, I think it will be an act conforming with the regulations of international law, end quote.

Now, despite the denial, if that was a denial, I'm not sure, from the Kim regime, NATO has for the first time confirmed the presence of North Korean troops in Russia. In a statement released on Monday, NATO Secretary General Mark Root revealed that North Korean military units have been deployed to Kursk, presumably in support of efforts to repel the Ukrainian invasion of that region.

Following a briefing of NATO officials and diplomats conducted by a South Korean delegation, Root told reporters, "...the deepening military cooperation between Russia and North Korea is a threat to both Indo-Pacific and Euro-Atlantic security."

Root said the North Korean deployment represented a, quote, significant escalation of Pyongyang's involvement in Russia's illegal war in Ukraine, a breach of UN Security Council resolutions, and a, quote, dangerous expansion of the war. He added that the deployment of North Korean troops was a sign of growing desperation on the part of Russian President Putin.

Speaking of Putin, he also spoke about the presence of North Korean troops in Russia, and he did it this weekend. On Friday, Putin declared that it was Russia's prerogative to deploy North Korean troops for the war in Ukraine. Okay, so the North Korean vice foreign minister said it's a groundless rumor, while Putin, well, he apparently has acknowledged their presence.

And to round it out, don't forget the Chinese government has said that they know nothing about anything. Speaking to journalists at the final press conference of the BRICS summit, Putin said, quote, This is our sovereign decision, whether we use it or not, where, how, and or whether we engage in exercises, training, or transfer some experience. It's our business, end quote. It's worth noting, in case you're keeping score at home, that the Kremlin had once dismissed news of the North Korean troop deployment as fake news.

As we reported last week, South Korea's intelligence chief told lawmakers in Seoul that 1,500 North Korean troops have already arrived in Russia, with anonymous sources telling South Korean media that the final figure could be close to 12,000.

South Korea's intelligence agency also confirmed that North Korea has sent more than 13,000 containers of artillery, missiles, and other conventional weapons to Russia since August of 2023.

And that, my friends, is the PDB Afternoon Bulletin for Monday, 28 October. If you have any questions or comments, please reach out to me at pdbatthefirsttv.com. And as you've probably seen in the headlines lately, if you want to listen to the show ad-free, well, it's simple. Just become a premium member of the President's Daily Brief by visiting pdbpremium.com. See? Very simple. I'm Mike Baker, and I'll be back tomorrow. Until then, stay informed.

Stay safe, stay cool.