Russia, China, Iran may boost efforts to influence U.S. election, Microsoft says

Microsoft’s Threat Analysis Center released a report on Wednesday noting heightened attempts by Russia, Iran, and China to influence the upcoming U.S. general election. The watchdog team expects foreign powers to continue using tools like artificial intelligence to cast doubt on the integrity of the 2024 election, Microsoft’s Threat Analysis Manager Clint Watts wrote in a release.

What is Russia doing? Russian actors continued using artificial intelligence to develop deepfake videos placing Democratic candidate Vice President Kamala Harris in a negative light. The report detailed a fake video of Harris making inappropriate comments about the assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump. Another used fake footage of a Zambian park ranger accusing the vice president of illegally poaching rhinos. Most of Russia’s fake content received minimal engagement, but the attempts highlighted Moscow’s intention to continue to stoke political discord in the United States, Watts stated.

What is Iran doing? Microsoft identified an Iranian actor, posing as an American, calling on U.S. voters to boycott the election because of candidates supporting Israel. Iranian state-linked actors also researched election-related websites in several swing states, suggesting the group planned more direct operations ahead of the election, according to the report. The U.S. government previously confirmed Iranian actors stoked anti-Israel sentiments online and on college campuses over the past year. Microsoft’s August election interference report also detailed Iranian hackers targeting the Trump campaign

What is China doing? Chinese state-linked actors targeted GOP candidates lower on the ballot who support anti-China policies, according to the report. Hackers magnified corruption accusations and bolstered opposing candidates. For example, Chinese actors targeted Republican Sen. Marsha Blackburn’s reelection campaign by churning out content bolstering Blackburn’s opponent. Microsoft detailed another instance earlier this month of several Chinese actor accounts accusing Texas state Rep. Michael McCaul of insider trading and abuse of power for personal gain.

Dig deeper: Read Josh Schumacher’s report on the Department of Justice accusing Russia, Iran, and China of election interference last month.