Today at 01:45
According to US intelligence, covert efforts by Russian authorities to influence the 2024 US presidential election are more advanced than previously thought.
The Washington Post reported this with reference to a senior official of the US Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI).
An ODNI official said Russia’s activities “are more sophisticated than during previous election cycles.”
He noted that Russia is using “real American voices” to “launder” Russian government propaganda and spread divisive narratives through social media and on fake websites posing as legitimate American media organizations.
According to the publication, “Moscow is targeting US swing states in particular and is using artificial intelligence to create fake content faster and more persuasively to shape the outcome in favor of former President Donald Trump,” the official said.
This is “in line with Moscow’s broader foreign policy goals of weakening the United States and undermining Washington’s support for Ukraine,” the ODNI representative said.
Two things put Russia “at the top of the list” of foreign governments seeking to influence the election, an ODNI official said. “They (Russians – ed.) are quite strong and experienced in carrying out this kind of activity. In addition, the scope and scale of their activity is quite significant.”
“Russia is working on election races,” the official added. The Russians are using artificial intelligence “to create synthetic content faster and more persuasively,” as well as hired influence firms that use marketing, public relations and other expertise to make it difficult to establish authorship.
“Americans are more likely to believe the opinions of other Americans than content with clear signs of foreign propaganda,” the official said. foreign entities”.
ODNI also noted that as Moscow’s sophistication grew, “the U.S. intelligence community’s understanding of these efforts has also grown — in our efforts to understand and counter them.”
Read also: Minsk agreements “trap” that allowed Russia to prepare for war, – Zelenskyy
