Foreign Disinformation

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? Foreign disinformation's AI surge

Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios

The world of AI-generated, adversarial disinformation is growing rapidly — and it's already indistinguishable from run-of-the-mill social posts, Axios Future of Cybersecurity author Sam Sabin writes. Why it matters: Foreign disinformation has become a highly disruptive force in the U.S., with Russia and other foreign powers seeking to influence elections and inflame discord. Generative AI is now making it far more effective and harder for average users to detect. "We are seeing now an ability to both develop and deliver at an efficiency, at a speed, at a scale that we've never seen before," Gen. Paul Nakasone, former head of the NSA and now director of the Vanderbilt Institute, told reporters at the DEF CON hacker conference earlier this month. ? Zoom in: At least one China-based technology company, GoLaxy, seems to be using generative AI to build influence operations in Taiwan and Hong Kong, according to internal documents leaked to researchers at Vanderbilt University's Institute of National Security. Documents show that GoLaxy has created profiles for at least 117 members of Congress and over 2,000 American political figures and thought leaders. Keep reading.

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Foreign disinformation about Charlie Kirk’s killing seeks to widen US divisions Russia moved to amplify online conspiracy theories about Charlie Kirk’s killing just hours after it happened, seeding social media with the frightening claim that America is slipping into civil war. Chinese and pro-Iranian groups also spread disinformation about the shooting. Read more.

Why this matters: Chinese propaganda has focused on the violent nature of Kirk’s death, painting the U.S. as a nation of violent gun owners and political extremists. Russian voices have tried to tie Kirk’s death to U.S. support for Ukraine, even spreading a conspiracy theory that the Ukrainian government killed Kirk because of his criticism of that aid. Pro-Iranian groups took a different tack, claiming Israel was behind Kirk’s death and that the suspect was set up to take the fall.   “We’ve seen multiple Russian campaigns attempting to exploit” Kirk’s killing, said Joseph Bodnar, senior research manager at the Institute for Strategic Dialogue. In many cases, the campaigns aren’t adding new claims but are recycling ones that emerged from American users. “They’re picking up domestic actors and amplifying them.”