Two new intelligence reports, one from Microsoft, presented evidence that China, Iran and Russia are aggressively trying to influence American voters in the midst of the Nov. 5 general election.
There is new evidence that China, Iran and Russia are aggressively expanding their efforts to influence American voters and potentially influence the outcome of the upcoming US elections.
Two threat intelligence reports released Wednesday, one from software giant Microsoft and the other from cybersecurity firm Recorded Future, detail the growing activity of cyber actors linked to each country, all aiming to influence public perceptions of United States less than two weeks before voters go to the polls.
The biggest change, according to Microsoft, comes from actors linked to China known to researchers as Spamouflage or Taizi Flood.
“Chinese influence operations have recently taken a new turn, shifting focus to several candidates and members of Congress,” Microsoft said, noting that as of September, China has targeted at least four prominent Republican lawmakers, all of them known critics. of the Beijing government.
More recently, China-linked accounts targeted Texas Republican Michael McCaul, accusing the chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee of “abusing power for personal gain.”
Late last month, Spamouflage accounts began attacking Tennessee Republican Sen. Marsha Blackburn, Microsoft said. And earlier this month, the same effort began promoting Blackburn's opponent in the Nov. 5 election.
Other targets include Alabama Republican Rep. Barry Moore, who was the target of content critical of his support for Israel, and Senate Intelligence Committee Vice Chairman Marco Rubio, a Republican, who was accused of corruption.
The Chinese Embassy in Washington rejected the allegations in the Microsoft report.
“The presidential election is an internal matter of the United States,” embassy spokesman Liu Pengyu told the Voice of America on Wednesday, echoing previous Chinese denials.
“Those accusations are full of malicious speculation against China, which China firmly opposes,” he added.
However, US lawmakers said they were not surprised by the rise in malignant activity.
“The CCP (Chinese Communist Party) cannot stand anyone who supports and gives voice to those it oppresses; their response is to sanction and attack,” McCaul said in a statement to the VOA.
“I consider it a badge of honor when the CCP—a leading violator of human rights, censor of free speech, and oppressor of its own people—questions my work,” he said.
Rubio, the ranking Republican on the Senate Intelligence Committee, called for Chinese influence efforts “to be taken very seriously.”
“China is becoming increasingly aggressive,” Rubio said in a statement to VOA. “China's goal is to shape American opinion on critical issues and target specific candidates, especially those they view as anti-China.”
Growing threats
Reports from Microsoft and Recorded Future warn that Beijing is not alone.
Specifically, investigations warn that cyber actors linked to Russia, known to researchers as Storm-1679 or Operation Overload, have increased their pace of operations over the last month and a half and are showing signs that more influence operations are coming. .
“Operation Overload is very likely to intensify its activities,” the Recorded Future report said.
Recorded Future said many of the Russian efforts, of late, have sought to provoke anger toward the LGBTQ+ community “using misinformation to perpetuate discriminatory beliefs around transgender people, perceived behavioral problems, gender transition and reassignment surgeries, and pharmaceutical treatments.” .
Other influence operations, according to the report, are making use of AI-generated voiceovers to emulate the style of American broadcast journalists.
Microsoft said Russian cyber actors have also found ways to reach more American voters by moving much of the content from social media platform Telegram to X.
“Storm-1679 videos posted on X received higher levels of engagement,” Microsoft said.
Microsoft researchers also warned that there are signs that Iran is also stepping up its election interference efforts.
The Microsoft report says that in one case, less than two weeks ago, “an online character operated by Iran began falsely posing as an American and called on Americans to boycott the election due to both candidates' support for the operations.” Israeli military.
Russia and Iran, like China, have repeatedly denied any involvement in attempts to interfere in the US elections.
But the new findings from Microsoft and Recorded Future match the assessments of US intelligence officials.
“Foreign actors, particularly Russia, Iran and China, remain determined to stoke divisive narratives to divide Americans and undermine American confidence in the American democratic system, consistent with what they perceive to be in their interests,” according to a declassified assessment released Tuesday by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.
US intelligence officials have previously said that Russia has been working to boost the chances of former president and current Republican candidate Donald Trump, while Iran has been working to damage Trump's re-election bid and instead boost the campaign of Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic presidential candidate.
And while there is little evidence to suggest China has sought to affect the U.S. presidential race, intelligence officials have said Beijing has been focusing its efforts on congressional candidates and states and localities perceived to promote harmful policies. for Beijing's interests.