Iran Seeking to Intimidate U.S. Voters With Spoofed Emails, Intelligence Official Says

Director of National Intelligence John Ratcliffe said at a Wednesday night announcement at FBI headquarters that Iran and Russia have both taken specific actions in an attempt to influence public opinion in the coming presidential election. He accused Iran of being behind the deceptive emails meant to intimidate voters, though he didn’t describe them in detail or mention the Proud Boys. He also said Iran was circulating a video that promotes a false narrative about fraudulent ballots being cast from abroad.

Iran and Russia have both obtained some U.S. voter registration information, though Mr. Ratcliffe didn’t explain what records were obtained by either Iran or Russia, or whether those records had been compromised through a breach of data. States often make information from voter registration records—such as names and party affiliation—publicly available. A senior intelligence official described Iran’s acquisition as more widespread and aggressive than Russia’s, which was more narrowly localized in its targeting.

“These actions are desperate attempts by desperate adversaries,” Mr. Ratcliffe said.

Alireza Miryousefi, a spokesman for the Iranian mission to the United Nations, denied the allegations and said Iran doesn’t interfere in the elections of other nations.

“Iran has no interest in interfering in the U.S. election and no preference for the outcome,” he said.

Russia has previously denied interfering in U.S. elections.

Mr. Ratcliffe said the spoofed emails from Iran were intended to damage Mr. Trump. Two officials familiar with the matter said the operation—which targeted Democratic voters—appeared chiefly focused on undermining public confidence in the election. A third official said that intelligence about the operation reflected both a desire to harm Mr. Trump and degrade election integrity, but the official declined to discuss specifics.

Mr. Ratcliffe’s office declined to comment.

The alleged Iranian campaign came amid heightened concerns of foreign interference in the final two weeks of the election season intended to create discord and undermine confidence in the vote.

“Our adversaries abroad seek to sow chaos and undermine voters’ belief in our democratic institutions, including the election systems and infrastructure that we rely on to record and properly report expressions of the voters’ will,” Sens. Marco Rubio of Florida and Mark Warner of Virginia, the Republican and Democratic leaders of the Senate Intelligence Committee, said in a statement Wednesday before Mr. Ratcliffe’s press conference. “They may seek to target those systems, or simply leave the impression that they have altered or manipulated those systems, in order to undermine their credibility and our confidence in them.”

Intelligence agencies previously warned this summer that Russia is interfering in the election to denigrate Democratic nominee Joe Biden, that China prefers Mr. Trump to lose re-election, and that Iran is also seeking to undermine U.S. democratic institutions while harming the Trump administration.

FBI Director Christopher Wray, speaking Wednesday at the same briefing, said officials were working to protect the integrity of the election, adding that claims online that question the voting process should be met with “a healthy dose of skepticism.”

“We are not going to tolerate foreign interference in our elections, or any criminal activity that threatens the sanctity of your vote or undermines public confidence in the outcome of the election,” Mr. Wray said.

“This data can be used by foreign actors to attempt to communicate false information to registered voters that they hope will cause confusion, sow chaos and undermine your confidence in American democracy,” Mr. Ratcliffe said.

Social media users and local news organizations on Tuesday reported that voters in Florida, Alaska and elsewhere had been receiving threatening messages that claimed to be from the Proud Boys, a far-right group supportive of Mr. Trump. But the group denied any involvement in media interviews and on social media posts. Cybersecurity experts highlighted vulnerabilities in a website affiliated with the Proud Boys that appeared to leave it open to being hijacked by hackers.

“You are currently registered as a Democrat and we know this because we have gained access into the entire voting infrastructure,” read the email posing as the Proud Boys. “You will vote for Trump on Election Day or we will come after you.”

Proud Boys didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment Wednesday evening.

Sen. Angus King (I., Maine), a member of the Senate Intelligence Committee, applauded Wednesday’s disclosure and urged the administration to continue being transparent about foreign threats to the election.

“Updates like these should be as regular as events and developments warrant, daily even, to give as much information as is possible to the American people, so long as we do not compromise sources and methods and our professionals out in the field,” Mr. King said.

Wednesday’s announcement reflected a sharp pivot from 2016, when the Obama administration was aware of intelligence pointing to Russian interference in the election but struggled for months with how to respond or what to say publicly. Eventually, the administration released a short statement a month before the election that pointed the finger at Moscow, but was devoid of many specific details.

Since then, several government agencies have focused on improving the U.S. response to foreign interference threats and pledged to share more intelligence with social media companies, campaigns and, when necessary, the public. Officials have defended their approach even as it has come under scrutiny from Democratic lawmakers, former officials and some security experts who have said the Trump administration isn’t giving priority to the issue.

“The process is working,” a U.S. security official said Wednesday while describing the public announcement. “We found out about this 24 hours ago and went from that to public attribution in record speed.”

—Rachael Levy contributed to this article.

Write to Dustin Volz at [email protected] and Sadie Gurman at [email protected]