Trump Says He "Could" Talk To Putin About Russia Hacking US Court System

US President Donald Trump on Wednesday acknowledged reports that Russian actors may have breached the federal court's electronic filing system, saying he "could" bring up the issue with their leader, Vladimir Putin, during their upcoming meeting in Alaska.

"I guess I could, are you surprised?" Trump said during a press event at the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC, when asked if he would raise the matter with Putin. "They hack in, that's what they do. They're good at it, we're good at it, we're actually better at it."

#WATCH | On reports of Russia suspected to be behind hack of US federal court filing system and if would bring it up when he meets President Putin later this week, US President Donald Trump says, "I guess I could...They hack in, that's what they do. They are good at it. We are… pic.twitter.com/uyfiUn2Bzg

— ANI (@ANI) August 13, 2025

Trump and the Russian President are scheduled to meet on August 15 at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage, Alaska, in what the White House describes as a "listening exercise" to gauge Moscow's willingness to end the war in Ukraine.

On Tuesday, The New York Times reported that hackers linked to Russia "compromised" sealed court records, including sensitive documents related to national security cases. Some targeted files involved mid-level criminal cases in New York City and other jurisdictions, with several concerning individuals of Russian and Eastern European origin. The hack is believed to be part of a years-long campaign, the paper said.

The breach affected the judiciary's Case Management/Electronic Case Files (CM/ECF) system, which stores both public and sealed documents, as well as the PACER system used for public access. Officials fear the intrusion could expose witnesses in criminal trials, including those involving Latin American drug cartels.

According to Politico, investigators believe the attackers exploited long-standing vulnerabilities first identified in 2020. The Administrative Office of the US Courts confirmed it is taking "additional steps to strengthen protections for sensitive case documents" and working with affected courts to mitigate the damage.

An internal memo obtained by the NYT warned that "persistent and sophisticated cyber threat actors have recently compromised sealed records" and called the matter "urgent."

This was Trump's first public acknowledgement of the hack. In the past, he has been reluctant to publicly confront Russia over cyber operations. In 2018, he cast doubt on US intelligence findings that Moscow interfered in the 2016 presidential election.