him out just a month later

Two of Donald Trump's closest former aides are linked to a firm that lobbied to help the Russian government spy on its own people, sources say.

Both former Trump campaign Chairman Paul Manafort and ex aide Rick Gates allegedly have ties to EyeLock, a New York firm which produces 'iris-reading' technology.

The company had lobbied Vladimir Putin's government which was looking to secretly install 'iris-reading' technology in their subways to locate people on their watch lists, sources told the New York Post.

Former Trump campaign Chairman Paul Manafort (left) and ex aide Rick Gates (right) allegedly have ties to EyeLock, a New York firm which produces 'iris-reading' technology

'It raises a lot of questions about national security and what should have been publicly disclosed to get a better handle on ties between the Trump campaign and the Russian government,' a former White House official told the Post.

The technology could scan as many as 50 people within a minute - allowing Russia to keep track of anyone walking through including political figures, diplomats, journalists or even tourists.

'They had some people on a naughty list, a black list, and they wanted to track these people,' a former executive told The Post. 'It was more surveillance, hit a black-list database, send up an alert.'

Eyelock did not get the contract.

But its ties to Putin's government raised questions about two of Trump's closest former aides.

Manafort was a major early investor in EyeLock, investing $1 million which gave him a 10 percent share in the company until his stake were diluted when the company was acquired last year by Voxx International.

Meanwhile Gates was hired by EyeLock as an independent contractor to build business in the Middle East.

Both Manafort and Gates were aware of its plans to enter the Russian market, sources said.

But Manafort was forced to resign in August amid increasing pressure over his ties to Ukraine's pro-Russian government.

His consulting company, David Manafort & Freeman, had helped elect Viktor Yanukovich, Ukraine's pro-Putin president, sources claim.

Gates stepped down just one month later.

EyeLock, a New York firm which produces 'iris-reading' technology, lobbied Vladimir Putin's (pictured) government which was looking to secretly install 'iris-reading' technology in their subways to locate people on their watch lists, sources said

Trump hired Manafort, whose experience with presidential contests stretches back to the Gerald Ford era, in March to supervise what was expected to be a bloody fight over a thin margin of delegates needed to capture the GOP presidential nomination.

Manafort brought in Gates and other longtime associates to work under him, professionalizing the campaign but also introducing the uncertainty that comes with new blood.

Gates was also named to DailyMail.com by several sources with knowledge of the steps that led to Melania Trump delivering a her now famous plagiarized speech.

Gates has said previously that he had no involvement at Eyelock with the Russian market.

Neither he or Manafort responded to reporters' request for comment.

EyeLock deny Manafort had any direct involvement with the company but was simply a minority shareholder.

'There is an entity which holds a minority interest in EyeLock LLC,' the company said in a statement.

'The Company understands that Mr. Manafort has (or had) a .03% indirect interest in EyeLock LLC through that entity. The notion that small, indirect interest would give Mr. Manafort a financial incentive to attempt to act on behalf of EyeLock is preposterous.'

Trump hired Manafort, whose experience with presidential contests stretches back to the Gerald Ford era, in March (pictured together in July)

There is no suggestion that EyeLock broke any rules by entering the Russian market.

But news that two of Trump's closest aides have been doing business with Putin's government is unwelcome news for the Republican candidate who is facing scrutiny over his own relationship with the Russian leader.

Trump, who has previously said Putin is a stronger leader than President Obama, was even accused of being his 'puppet' in a fiery presidential debate by rival Hillary Clinton.

After claiming that Putin had 'no respect' for Clinton, she had fired back: 'Well that's because he'd rather have a puppet as president of the United States.

'You continue to get help from him because he has a very clear favorite in this race,' Clinton said.

A supporter of hers, former CIA deputy director Michael Morell, has said Trump may be an 'unwitting agent' of the Russian Federation, citing a series of campaign ties and policy positions.

Trump has previously praised Putin saying, ' The man has very strong control over a country,' when asked about Putin's past praise for him at a commander in chief forum on NBC.

EYELOCK'S IRIS SCANNING TECHNOLOGY New York-based firm EyeLock describes itself as a leader in biometric technology, and a provider of iris-based identity authentication products and technology solutions. They have several products which are able to scan someone's iris - while that information is relayed back to a database which searches for a match. They include the HBOX, an overhead iris scanner which can be discretely installed above a crowd on the wall or ceiling. The tech recognizes up to 50 people per minute, both while moving and at-a-distance. EyeLock's website states it is 'ideal for high throughput environments such as building lobbies, border control, transportation (airports), stadiums, manufacturing / construction and theme parks.' The biometric experts also offer the NXT - an iris scanner used for door or building entrance - and the Myris device. The $250 Myris is a handheld device which scans a user's iris to create an encrypted code which can be used for an extra security step for online passwords. Once registered, each user can add various online passwords to their Myris profile. Next time the user visits one of these accounts, instead of entering a password, they can scan their eyes for immediate and secure access. According to EyeLock, the False Acceptance Rate of the average fingerprint sensor, in which the system is hacked by an unknown print, is one in every 10,000 scans. For iris scans, this increases to one 1 in 2.25 trillion scans. Biometric experts at New York-based firm EyeLock create a dongle fitted with an iris scanner Advertisement

'I think when he calls me brilliant I'll take the compliment, okay?' Trump said when pressed about Putin, whose regime is under U.S. and international sanctions over Russia's incursion into Ukraine. 'The fact is, look, it's not gonna get him anywhere,' he added.

'If he says great things about me, I'm going to say great things about him.'

Trump also took heat in July when he spoke about encouraging Russia try to uncover Hillary Clinton's emails.

'Russia, if you're listening, I hope you're able to find the 30,000 emails that are missing,' Trump said.

He later claimed he was joking and insisted that 'nobody knows for a fact' that Russia has been behind the DNC leaks.

Trump's campaign denies any knowledge of Manafort and Gates' ties to EyeLock.