USA: Russia and Iran are intensifying election disinformation campaigns

2024-11-05 08:37:00, Kosova & Bota CNA

US intelligence and security officials have accused Russia and Iran of stepping up cyber attacks and disinformation campaigns they say are aimed at sowing division as Americans vote in a tense presidential election on November 5.

Russian-linked influencers “are creating fake videos and articles to undermine the legitimacy of the election, to instill fear among voters about the electoral process, and to suggest that Americans are using violence against each other because of political preferences," said the announcement issued Nov. 4 by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency.

"These efforts risk inciting violence, including against election officials," these agencies said.

US intelligence agencies have warned for months that there are efforts supported by the Russian government to influence the US election, where former Republican President Donald Trump and Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris are facing off.

Pre-election polls suggested the race would be close, raising tensions as voters head to the polls after a bitter campaign.

Citing an example of the disinformation tactics being used, US agencies said in a statement that Russian influencers recently posted a fake article claiming that US officials in key states - expected to determine the election outcome - are planning orchestrate election fraud using a variety of tactics, including ballot box stuffing and cyber attacks.

They also said that Russian influence actors created and distributed the fake video showing the affidavit of a person alleging election fraud in Arizona, which involved creating fake ballots from out of state and altering voter rolls to favored Harris.

The Arizona Secretary of State has already said these claims are false.

While "Russia is the most active threat," the release said, Iran also remains "a significant threat of foreign influence" on American elections.

"We have assessed that Iran has conducted malicious cyber activities to compromise former President Trump's campaign," the intelligence agencies said.

"Iranian influence actors also intend to create false media content, to prevent voting or to incite violence, as they have done in past election cycles."

The agencies urged voters "to be informed by reliable, official sources, separately from state and local election officials" in light of "ongoing foreign influence efforts and the rise of inauthentic content on the Internet."

Both Tehran and Moscow have denied playing a role in any disinformation campaign during the American presidential elections./REL