It was just a few weeks ago that we learned that Iran hacked the Trump campaign and leaked (rather anodyne) documents to the world's media. 

More recently, we learned that China hacked our telecoms and got access to phone and internet taps that were created by our intelligence "community," and while the information put out suggested that the information they got was only from accounts that the federal government was watching, I had my doubts about that.  

Now we learn that China has been going after (getting?) data from President Trump's and J.D. Vance's phones. 

🚨 “Chinese hackers who are believed to have burrowed deep into U.S. communications networks targeted data from phones used by former President Donald J. Trump & his running mate, Senator JD Vance of Ohio, people familiar with the matter said on Friday.”https://t.co/4iWGgMHtMj pic.twitter.com/0m36uKY9p9

— Jerry Dunleavy IV 🇺🇸 (@JerryDunleavy) October 25, 2024

It sure seems like America's adversaries are deeply invested in keeping Donald Trump out of the White House. 

Chinese hackers who are believed to have burrowed deep into American communications networks targeted data from phones used by former President Donald J. Trump and his running mate, Senator JD Vance of Ohio, people familiar with the matter said on Friday.

Investigators are working to determine what communications data, if any, was taken or observed by the sophisticated penetration of telecom systems, according to these people, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe an active and highly sensitive national security case.

The type of information on phones used by a presidential candidate and his running mate could be a gold mine for an intelligence agency: Who they called and texted, how often they communicated with certain people, and how long they talked to those people could be highly valuable to an adversary like China. That sort of communications data could be even more useful if hackers could observe it in real time.

Trump may be portrayed as a threat to the very soul of America, but our adversaries for some reason think he is a threat to them in a way that Kamala Harris and Joe Biden are not. There is some indication that some Democrats were targeted too, and it would seem odd if none were since information about any prominent political figures would be valuable. But it sure seems like there is a lot of focus on Trump. 

I wonder why that is. 

The targeting of a presidential ticket’s communications underscores the aggressiveness, scope and potential severity of the hacking attack, which Western cybersecurity experts believe was carried out by a group they have called Salt Typhoon. The investigation is continuing, but the F.B.I. and national security officials have signaled that they are deeply concerned about the potential extent of compromised data and the wide range of possible victims.

It was unclear whether the hackers could have gained access to text messages, especially those sent through unencrypted channels.

The New York Times, through its focus, makes pretty clear that the primary target is Trump and his circle. The headline says it, the article implies it by pretty much ignoring any other targets, and it's pretty obvious why that would be. 

Trump doesn't like "Chyna," as he pronounces it. You know, that country that is preparing for war with us. 

The revelation came in the closing stages of a campaign in which Mr. Trump’s team has also been targeted by Iranian hackers, who have repeatedly targeted his inner circle with spearphishing emails that were at least partly successful in gaining access to his campaign’s communications and documents.

Security around Mr. Trump has also been tightened as a result of assassination threats from Iran.

A Trump campaign spokesman did not directly address whether the phones used by Mr. Trump and Mr. Vance had been targeted. But in a statement, the spokesman, Steven Cheung, criticized the White House and Vice President Kamala Harris and sought to blame them for allowing a foreign adversary to target the campaign.

Earlier this year, security officials discovered the presence in American telecommunications systems of a China-affiliated hacking group. But investigators determined only recently that the hackers were targeting specific phone numbers, the officials said.

This brings up a question: if the hack worked by getting access to a back door used by the American intelligence community and gave access to data streams which were tapped, does that mean that the US government has been tapping Trump's and Vance's phones? 

I don't know. As I said, I had doubts that what we were told is that the access was limited to those data streams tapped by the government, but the stories about the hacks were...vague. I have been told by experts that turning on the taps required physical access to equipment, but I have no independent knowledge about that and the technology may now be completely software-related. 

It would be nice to get a fuller explanation of that since it would tell us whether our own government was tapping the Republican ticket. Seems very Watergatey to me. I am sure that there are some very enterprising Washington Post reporters ready to jump at the chance to expose Democrat shenanigans. 

And really, how different are the governments of China and the United States anymore? Our leaders are rushing to embrace Chinese policies as it is.