Foreign hackers from Iran, Russia, and China are escalating their attempts to interfere in the US Presidential election’s outcome.
This week, the US intelligence community specifically accused Iranian actors of hacking into Donald Trump’s presidential campaign as well as Vice-President Kamala Harris’s campaign being targeted by foreign hackers.
Multiple agencies, including Meta and Microsoft’s threat intelligence division, have sounded the alarm over the increasing interference as election day approaches. However, the motives and methods behind these cyberattacks differ across the nations involved.
The US intelligence community highlighted that Iranian actors see the upcoming election as especially significant, aiming to “stoke discord” within the country. The joint statement from the FBI, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, mentioned tactics such as “social engineering” and “thefts and disclosures” being part of Iran’s strategy.
The statement added that these methods are not new, as Iran and Russia have employed similar tactics in past US elections and other countries worldwide. Despite these accusations, Iran has denied any involvement, dismissing the intelligence report as “unsubstantiated”.
“We will not tolerate foreign efforts to influence or interfere with our elections, including the targeting of American political campaigns.”
According to a recent report by Microsoft Threat Intelligence, Iranian activities have contributed to a rise in “foreign malign influence,” with cyber-enabled operations being a consistent feature in the last three US election cycles. The report also noted that Iranian operations often emerge later in the election season and are more focused on disrupting the election process rather than directly influencing voter decisions.
Recent months have also seen Russian actors accused of attempting to sway the election. Meta’s latest threat report identified a “deceptive campaign from Russia” involving fake news stories and AI-generated content on YouTube.
Russia has been the leading source of coordinated inauthentic behaviour (CIB) networks disrupted since 2017, with Meta reporting 39 covert influence operations from Russia, 30 from Iran, and 11 from China. Russia’s interference is often aimed at supporting candidates opposing aid to Ukraine and criticising those advocating for it. The goal is to exploit economic hardships in the US and undermine support for Ukraine.
US intelligence agencies have also warned of Russian operatives covertly using social media to influence public opinion, often employing deep fake technology and inflammatory content to spread disinformation.
China, labelled by Meta as the third-highest source of CIB operations, has also been active in influencing American discourse. Microsoft’s report noted that CCP-linked actors have been expanding their activities to new platforms and audiences in the lead-up to the election. For example, these actors have been stoking outrage around pro-Palestinian protests at US universities and attempting to manipulate both left-leaning and right-wing groups to further agitate conflicts.
A US intelligence report from March highlighted China’s growing sophistication in influence operations, particularly through the use of generative AI and targeting candidates as early as the 2022 midterm elections. The report suggested that China’s primary aim is to sideline critics of Beijing and magnify societal divisions within the US.
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