Trump might be the most accessible president ever — for spies or scammers
President Trump reportedly picks up when his cell rings even if he doesn't know who's calling. Senior members of his team also love chatting on their personal devices.
That makes the administration uniquely vulnerable to basic scams like spoofed calls and impersonation attempts.
Why it matters: If Trump is willing to answer unknown numbers, as The Atlantic reported this week, there's no guarantee a scammer, impersonator, or even a foreign intelligence operative couldn't have a chat with the president.
There's no evidence that has actually happened. But recent reports involving Trump and other top officials have raised red flags about the security of their communications.
Driving the news: Federal authorities are investigating a scheme where someone spoofed the phone number of White House chief of staff Susie Wiles to impersonate her in calls to senators, governors, and CEOs, per the Wall Street Journal.
Meanwhile, Chinese hackers reportedly penetrated U.S. telecom networks as early as summer 2023, according to Bloomberg — a year earlier than previously known.
That access has been used by China-backed group Salt Typhoon to spy on Trump, Vice President Vance, and other officials, the NYT reported.
Then there are the series of Signal-related scandals involving former national security adviser Mike Waltz, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and others.
Between the lines: Eavesdropping on world leaders isn't new — but it's a lot easier if the leader in question is using a personal phone and eschewing standard cybersecurity practices.
Flashback: In 2017, Trump had two phones — one issued through the White House and only capable of making phone calls, and a less secure phone equipped just for social media.
At the time, he was urged to swap out his Twitter phone at least once a month. Politico reported he'd instead go months without security checks.
It's unclear how many of those security protocols were brought back in this time around. "I think people gave up on that years ago," one adviser told The Atlantic.
In a written statement, White House communications director Steven Cheung said the administration would "not discuss or disclose security measures regarding the President."
"President Trump is the most transparent and accessible President in American history," Cheung said. "World leaders, heads of state, elected officials, and business titans all reach out to him because they know America is back under President Trump's leadership.
"Whereas, Joe Biden was hidden and sheltered by his handlers because he was a total embarrassment and bumbling idiot during his time in office," Cheung added.
The big picture: Since returning to office, the Trump administration has:
Ignored basic security norms, including heavy reliance on Signal and personal numbers.
Gutted existing federal cybersecurity leadership, with one-third of CISA's staff already gone.
Empowered security-weakening tech initiatives through Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), which has been pursuing projects like using a buggy AI tool to crawl sensitive government data.
Threat level: AI tools can clone a voice using just a few seconds of audio, and the FBI warned last month that scammers are already using them to impersonate senior officials.
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Politico
26 minutes ago
- Politico
Cuomo the a--hole
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He's an asshole, but he's our asshole,' The Atlantic wrote last week, summarizing the case for Cuomo. Actor and activist Cynthia Nixon responded — speaking from the position of somebody who ran against Cuomo in the 2018 primary for governor, and who knows assholes from a four-decade career in Hollywood. 'I don't think that we need our own sphincter to challenge Trump,' she said at an anti-Cuomo rally ahead of the No Kings march in Manhattan Saturday. Cuomo 'is bought and bossed, not just by random billionaires or corporations, but in many cases, by the exact same billionaires and corporations that bought Donald Trump four more years,' she added. 'Andrew Cuomo is not our asshole. Say it with me!' The crowd, soaked in the rain, yelled back: 'Andrew Cuomo is not our asshole!' It's not just supporters who've dubbed him with the term. 'He's an abuser and an asshole,' state Sen. Gustavo Rivera said when asked if Cuomo was a tough guy. 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'His record is part of the same pattern of neglect that our communities, and so many New Yorkers, have faced,' she said of the former governor. — Jason Beeferman FIRST IN PLAYBOOK: A state-of-the-race memo released today by the Working Families Party reviews its strategy and lays out its progress with Primary Day just around the corner. Its mission for 2025? Combat the disillusion that led 900,000 Democratic voters in New York State to sit out the 2024 election. Its strategy? Present the choices as working families versus billionaires. 'Even small increases in turnout among our base could tip the balance in critical races across the state,' local party co-directors Jasmine Gripper and Ana María Archila wrote. In New York City, the third party endorsed Mamdani as its first choice in the Democratic primary for mayor, followed by Lander, Adams and Myrie. It lauded the Mamdani-Lander cross-endorsement, which came late in the cycle as Cuomo continues to lead almost every poll. The party's ranked endorsement was also relatively late in a cycle dominated by Cuomo. One of its choices broke with party leadership: state Sen. Jessica Ramos endorsed Cuomo and got dropped from the slate altogether. Myrie hasn't done any cross-endorsements, but said he'd rank the party's slate, as did Adrienne Adams today, as noted above. And it argued that Cuomo, 'the candidate favored by Trump's billionaires,' is hitting his ceiling in polling. A recent Marist poll found Cuomo leading Mamdani by 10 points in the final round of a ranked-choice voting simulation, and Mamdani's critics argue he too has hit his ceiling. The third party — whose line Cuomo was accused of seeking to nix in 2020 — is also backing Dorcey Applyrs for Albany mayor, Sharon Owens for Syracuse mayor and Sean Ryan for Buffalo mayor. — Emily Ngo SPEAKING OF MEMOS: Moderate national think tank Third Way released its own memo today urging New York City Democrats not to rank Mamdani, writing, 'Leaving aside Mamdani's positions that some believe border on antisemitism, it is his proud affiliation with the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) that worries us most.' The memo excerpts parts of the DSA platform. And the group argued that Mamdani as mayor would help Trumpism and hurt Democrats nationwide in upcoming elections. 'Republican attack ads in swing districts attaching moderate Democratic candidates to Mamdani and the DSA practically write themselves,' Third Way said in its memo. 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'The Campaign Finance Board closely monitors spending by all campaigns as well as independent spenders and provides expenditure relief when permitted by law.' The democratic socialist sent a letter to the board seeking more leeway to counteract two super PACs supporting Cuomo. Together, they have flooded the race with a record $19 million to boost the former governor and attack Mamdani. 'Andrew Cuomo is trying to buy this election,' Mamdani said at a press conference outside the Campaign Finance Board's headquarters. 'He has a super PAC, that is now the best funded super PAC in New York City's history … that is ensuring that every New Yorker, when they turn on their television, they open their mailbox, and they watch a video on YouTube will be met with yet another attack ad that is lying about myself and this campaign.' 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