The National Security Agency warned senior White House officials in classified briefings that improper use of personal cellphones and email could make them vulnerable to espionage by Russia, China, Iran and other adversaries, according to officials familiar with the briefings.
The briefings came soon after President Donald Trump was sworn into office on Jan. 20, and before some top aides, including senior adviser Jared Kushner, used their personal email and phones to conduct official White House business, as disclosed by POLITICO this week.
The NSA briefers explained that cyberspies could be using sophisticated malware to turn the personal cellphones of White House aides into clandestine listening devices, to take photos and video without the user’s knowledge and to transfer vast amounts of data via Wi-Fi networks and Bluetooth, according to one former senior U.S. intelligence official familiar with the briefings.
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If Kushner did not adhere to the security precautions, it could lead to a significant security breach, the officials said, given his access to President Donald Trump and unique portfolio of responsibilities. Kushner, who is Trump’s son-in-law, is the president’s point man on China, Syria, Middle East peace, and Afghanistan, along with innovation, infrastructure and other issues.
“Jared is probably one of the top five or 10 targets in the U.S. government because of his access to the president and because of the portfolios he’s been given,” said Richard Clarke, a former top cybersecurity advisor to three presidents. “It’s a pretty safe bet that his personal devices have been compromised by foreign intelligence services. And therefore there is some risk that meetings he attends are compromised too.”
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A White House official told POLITICO that West Wing staffers are expected to follow security protocols, including leaving their cellphones in security lockers outside offices where classified information is discussed. White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said earlier in the week that aides were frequently warned about using private email accounts, and that “to my knowledge, it’s very limited.”
POLITICO
reported Sunday that Kushner and his wife, Trump’s daughter Ivanka, created a private family domain before Trump took office. Kushner used it to communicate with top White House officials in early 2017. Kushner’s attorney said the messages totaled fewer than 100 from January through August.
A day later, POLITICO reported that at least five Trump aides used personal email for public business, including Ivanka Trump and economic adviser Gary Cohn, and that Priebus tried unsuccessfully to stop White House aides’ rampant use of cellphones for official business.
