Russia is relying on unwanted Americans to spread election disinformation, US officials say
WASHINGTON: The Kremlin is turning to American junkies and commercial Russian PR firms to spread disinformation about the US presidential race, top intelligence officials said Monday, detailing the latest efforts by America's adversaries to shape public opinion before the 2024 election.
The warning comes after a tumultuous few weeks in US politics that have forced Russia, Iran and China to revise some of the details of their propaganda playbook. What hasn't changed, intelligence officials said, is the determination of these nations to seed the Internet with false and inflammatory claims about American democracy to undermine confidence in elections.
“The American public should be aware that the content they read online — especially on social media — could be foreign propaganda, even if it appears to come from fellow Americans or originate in the United States,” a U.S. official said. at the Director's Office. The National Intelligence Service who briefed reporters on condition of anonymity under rules set by the director's office.
Russia continues to pose the biggest threat when it comes to election disinformation, authorities said, while there are signs that Iran is expanding its efforts and China is treading carefully when it comes to 2024.
Kremlin-linked groups are increasingly hiring marketing and communications firms located in Russia to outsource some of the work of creating digital propaganda while covering their tracks, officials said during a briefing with reporters.
Two such firms were the subject of new US sanctions announced in March. Authorities say the two Russian companies created fake websites and social media profiles to spread Kremlin disinformation.
Disinformation can focus on candidates or voting, or on issues that are already the subject of debate in the US, such as immigration, crime or the war in Gaza.
The ultimate goal, however, is to get Americans to spread Russian disinformation without questioning its origin. People are more likely to trust and repost information they believe is from a national source, officials said. Fake websites designed to mimic US news outlets and AI-generated social media profiles are just two methods.
In some cases, Americans and American technology and media companies have willingly amplified and reproduced the Kremlin's messages.
“Foreign influence actors are getting better at hiding their hand, and you're getting Americans to do it,” said the official, who spoke alongside officials from the FBI and the Department of Homeland Security.
Sen. Mark Warner, chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, said last month that he feared the U.S. could be more vulnerable to foreign disinformation this year than it was before the 2020 election. On Monday, he said the warning from intelligence officials shows that the US election is “in the crosshairs of bad actors around the globe.”
“It also underscores, troublingly, the extent to which foreign actors — and Russia in particular — rely on both unwitting and informed Americans to promote foreign-aligned narratives in the United States,” said Warner, a Democrat. of Virginia, in a statement.
In a measure of the threat, officials who track foreign disinformation say they have issued twice as many warnings to political candidates, government leaders, election offices and others targeted by foreign groups so far in the 2024 election cycle than they did in cycle 2022.
Officials would not disclose how many warnings were issued or who received them, but said the significant increase reflected heightened interest in the presidential race by America's adversaries, as well as improved government efforts to identify and warn about such threats .
Warnings are given so targets can take steps to protect themselves and clear up the situation if necessary.
Russia and other countries are moving quickly to exploit some of the recent developments in the presidential race, including the assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump, as well as President Joe Biden's decision to drop out of the race in favor of Vice President Kamala Harris.
In the wake of the attack on Trump, for example, Russian disinformation agencies quickly ramped up claims that Democratic rhetoric led to the shooting, or even baseless conspiracy theories suggesting that Biden or the Ukrainian government orchestrated the attempt.
“These pro-Russian voices sought to link the assassination attempt to Russia's ongoing war against Ukraine,” concluded the Atlantic Council's Digital Crime Lab, which tracks Russian disinformation.
Intelligence officials have determined in the past that Russian propaganda appeared designed to support Trump, and officials said Monday they have not changed that assessment.
Eroding support for Ukraine remains a primary focus of Russian disinformation, and Trump has praised Russian President Vladimir Putin in the past and is seen as less supportive of NATO.
While China mounted an extensive disinformation campaign ahead of Taiwan's recent election, the nation has shown much more caution when it comes to the U.S. Beijing could use disinformation to target congressional races or other voting contests in down in which a candidate expressed strong views about China. But China is not expected to try to influence the presidential race, officials said Monday.
Xie Feng, the Chinese ambassador to the US, said on Monday that his government had no intention of interfering in US politics.
Iran, however, has adopted a more aggressive stance. The Director of National Intelligence, Avril Haines, said earlier this month that the Iranian government secretly supported American protests against Israel's war against Hamas in Gaza. Iran-linked groups have posed as activists online, encouraged protests and provided financial support to protest groups, Haines said.
Iran opposes candidates who could raise tensions with Tehran, officials said. That description fits Trump, whose administration struck a nuclear deal with Iran, reimposed sanctions and ordered the killing of a top Iranian general.
Messages left with representatives of the Russian and Iranian governments were not immediately returned Monday.
