During the US election, Russia may use fake news to destabilize "shaky" states, increasing the risk of violence. American special services warned about this.
Points of attention
- US intelligence agencies have warned of the risk of violence in "shaky" states due to fake news spread by Russia with the aim of undermining confidence in the election process.
- Russia is using artificial intelligence to support Trump and discredit Vice President Kamala Harris and the Democratic Party during the election.
- The Russian Federation creates fake videos and articles to intimidate voters, undermine the legitimacy of elections, and spread the idea of possible violence as a result of political differences in the United States.
- Voters are urged to get information from verified sources and to be wary of fake news spread by Russia during and after the elections.
US special services warned about the risk of violence in "shaky" states due to fakes of the Russian Federation
This is stated in a statement by the US Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI), the FBI and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA).
In particular, the special services reported that since Friday they have been observing how foreign adversaries, in particular Russia, intensified influence operations to undermine confidence in the election process in the United States and inflame internal conflicts.
This activity is expected to increase on Election Day and in the following weeks, with a major focus on swing states.
The biggest threat is Russia... Influencers associated with it create fake videos and articles to undermine the legitimacy of the election, intimidate voters and spread the idea that political differences in the US can lead to violence, the statement said.
Intelligence services warn that these efforts may lead to incitement to violence, particularly against members of election commissions.
We expect that Russia will continue to spread fabricated content during Election Day and in the weeks ahead," the statement said.
The threat of foreign influence from Iran also remains.
Voters are urged to obtain information from verified sources, such as official representatives of election authorities.
How the Russian Federation uses AI to influence the US presidential election
According to a representative of the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI), who wished to remain anonymous, Russia is actively using artificial intelligence to promote Trump and discredit Vice President Kamala Harris and the Democratic Party, including through conspiracy theories.
Generative AI, the official explained, creates content — text, images and video — that appear human-made, based on learning from previous data.
According to an ODNI representative, Russia uses AI content to influence elections more than other countries, although the exact amount of such content is not known. She also has more experience and a better understanding of how US elections work and what targets to choose for influence.
When asked about the methods used to spread this content, the official referred to a July 9 Department of Justice statement regarding a Russian operation that used AI-enhanced social media accounts to influence the United States and other countries.
In particular, "Russian influencers" created a video in which a woman accuses Kamala Harris of fleeing the scene of the accident. Although the video was staged and not AI-generated, Microsoft found it to be part of a Russian disinformation campaign.
