(CN) - Opening his first news conference in six months, President-elect Donald Trump denied allegations that Russian operatives have compromising personal and financial information about him, condemning the publication of such claims as "outrageous and irresponsible."
He also addressed speculation that the unsubstantiated reports were leaked to the media by U.S. intelligence agencies, saying it would be a "tremendous blot on their record if they did that."
"I think it's a disgrace that information would be let out," Trump said, referring to an intelligence briefing he received last week. "I saw the information. I read the information outside of that meeting."
Later, White House spokesman Josh Earnest responded by saying it's "deeply misguided for anybody, at any level, to question the integrity and motives of the patriots" who supply the nation's intelligence.
But if anything, Trump was even angrier with those news outlets that went into detail about what the leaked documents said. Co-opting an allegation that dogged the presidential campaign, he said the reports publicized about him the night before are "all fake news."
"It's lies," Trump said. "It didn't happen. It was gotten hold of by opponents of ours who decided to put that crap out."
"That it got out at all, and got committed to paper is an absolute disgrace," he added.
Trump also conceded for the first time that Russia was behind the hacking of the Democratic National Convention last year.
"I think it is Russia," Trump said, though he quickly added that we are "hacked by a lot of others."
Trump also said the Democratic National Committee was "wide open" to hacking and that, when then-GOP chairman Reince Priebus heard about the hacking, the Republicans took additional steps to protect their own servers.
Trump also said that he has told associates for years that they should be careful whenever they are overseas, specifically warning them that, "given the state of technology," cameras "could be anywhere."
"And not just in Russia, but anywhere," he said.
Trump said he was in Russia several years ago for a Miss Universe contest that he presented, but said he long ago adopted a personal policy of caution that he's shared with others.
"I tell people, you better be careful or you're going to wind up watching yourself on nightly television," he said.
In an aside, Trump made an oblique reference to some of the seamier aspects of the alleged compromising information. "I'm also very much a germaphobe," the president-elect said.
His remarks came following an introduction by his spokesman, Sean Spicer, who specifically attacked BuzzFeed for publishing the report, calling its actions the product of "a political witch hunt" and the decision of other media outlets to report the story "a sad and pathetic effort to get clicks" on their websites.
Vice President-elect Mike Pence also blasted the reports, which he said "can only be attributed to media bias and an attempt to demean the president-elect and our incoming administration."
Trump used the press conference as well to address concerns about his interest conflicts. Announcing that he will put all his business assets in a trust, Trump said he will hand control of his company to his two adult sons and a longtime business executive, but also said he won't divest himself of his empire.