“No computer is safe” when it comes to keeping information private, says Trump.

President-elect Donald Trump says he is aware and much knowledgeable about cyber-hacking.

Trump’s statement to reporters during his annual New Year’s Eve followed:

“You know, if you have something really important, write it out and have it delivered by courier, the old-fashioned way … because I’ll tell you what: no computer is safe,” Trump said.

The billionaire businessman repeatedly declined allegations by US intelligence agencies that Russia tried to influence the presidential election through hacking.

President Barack Obama ordered sanctions on Russian spy agencies last week, closed two Russian compounds, and expelled 35 diplomats the US alleged were really spies. The Russian government has denied the allegations.

Trump plans to meet intelligence officials in the coming days to learn more about the allegations. He said he wants US officials “to be sure, because it’s a pretty serious charge”.

He pointed to intelligence failures over the existence of weapons of mass destruction in Iraq before the US invasion.

“I know a lot about hacking,” he said, “and hacking is a very hard thing to prove, so it could be somebody else.”

“I also know things that other people don’t know and so, we cannot be sure of the situation,” he added.

On the other side Trump who is against computers is has 45 million followers on Twitter. When an ABC News interviewer asked whether Trump would continue his highly unusual – and deeply controversial – approach of making major policy statements over Twitter, his communications director Sean Spicer replied, “Sure, why not?”

“I think it freaks the mainstream media out that he has this following of over 45-plus million people that follow him on social media, that he can have a direct conversation,” he added.

Spicer added: “Business, as usual, is over … There’s a new sheriff in town.”