As the final sprint of the US presidential election approaches, online interference attempts by Russia, Iran and China are taking hold, new research claims.
The latest in a series of Microsoft reports notes how the respective nation-states each maintain their own areas of focus, with Russia seeking to undermine the Harris-Walz campaign while China has coordinated its efforts to downvote members of Congress and Republican candidates.
Iran has also demonstrated its ability to conduct simultaneous cyber influence campaigns, continuing its efforts to influence the US elections while continuing to engage in new activities as the situation in the Middle East escalates.
Increasing use of AI and deepfakes
The Russian trend towards the use of AI and deepfake videos continues, with Russian threat actors releasing three new fake videos from the Harris-Walz campaign.
The first is an altered video of Harris allegedly making derogatory comments about her rival, former President Donald Trump. The second, generated by Storm-1516, alleges that Harris has committed illegal poaching in Zambia. A latest deepfaked and AI-enhanced video has been spotted making the rounds on X (formerly Twitter) spreading disinformation about Democratic vice presidential nominee Tim Walz.
On China, the focus has been on amplifying messages of anti-Semitism and corruption against Republican candidates and members of Congress pushing for anti-China policies, such as Rep. Barry Moore, Sen. Marsha Blackburn and Sen. Marco Rubio. .
Iran has used escalating tensions in the Middle East to fuel its election meddling, including efforts to organize election boycotts and rallies against U.S. support for Israel. The main focus of these efforts is an attempt to further exclude certain groups and sow distrust and violence between communities.
Microsoft emphasizes that manipulated media can spread quickly during times of heightened emotions, conflict and competition. Disinformation spread by nation states is often widely shared among audiences on social media and accepted as truth before being verified or debunked.
“History has shown that the ability of foreign actors to quickly spread misleading content can have a significant impact on public perception and election outcomes,” said Clint Watts, managing director of the Microsoft Threat Analysis Center.
“With particular attention to the 48 hours before and after election day, voters, government agencies, candidates and parties must remain vigilant against deceptive and suspicious activity online. Early detection and fact-checking remain essential to counter these efforts and maintain election integrity. .”