This article was originally published by Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty and is reprinted with permission.
The United States expects Russia, Iran, and China to continue their attempts to influence the November 5 elections by using artificial intelligence to disseminate fake information, according to a report released on October 2 by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
The department considers the three countries the most pressing foreign threats to U.S. critical infrastructure and expects them to remain so.
The Justice Department last week provided examples of how Russia was behind a fake San Francisco television channel that spread lies about Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic party’s nominee for president.
The fictitious station used actors to create a fake broadcast about Harris’s involvement in a hit-and-run incident that never occurred. The fake broadcast was viewed by millions on X and TikTok before the FBI and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence told reporters the Russian “influence actors” were behind it.
These “influence actors” have also attempted to stoke discord by amplifying stories about migrants entering the United States and have used generative artificial intelligence (AI) to create fake websites that appeared to be authentic U.S.-based media outlets, the DHS report said.
“Nation-states, criminal hacktivists, and financially motivated criminals will likely hone their techniques to disrupt U.S. services or to conduct espionage focused on gaining access to U.S. networks and critical infrastructure entities,” the DHS said in its annual homeland threat assessment.
The DHS assessment anticipates Russia, Iran, and China “will use a blend of subversive, undeclared, criminal, and coercive tactics to seek new opportunities to undermine confidence in U.S. democratic institutions and domestic social cohesion.”
The report said Iran has become “increasingly aggressive in its foreign influence efforts,” citing Iranian actors who posed as activists online to encourage protests over the conflict in Gaza.
Polls indicate the presidential election between Harris and Republican former President Donald Trump will be so close that the result could further inflame partisan tensions and offer opportunities for foreign adversaries to try to disrupt the democratic process.
Domestic violent extremists pose another serious threat, according to the report. DHS said it expects domestic extremists to attempt violent actions “with the intent of instilling fear among voters, candidates, and election workers, as well as disrupting election processes.”
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