Foreign adversaries are escalating efforts as the 2024 election approaches, says a report from the national intelligence chief.
Foreign powers are increasingly using artificial intelligence (AI) to influence how Americans vote, according to a new intelligence report released just 45 days ahead of the 2024 presidential election.
âThese actors most likely judge that amplifying controversial issues and divisive rhetoric can serve their interests by making the United States and its democratic system appear weak and by keeping the U.S. government distracted with internal issues instead of pushing back on their hostile behavior in other parts of the world,â the Sept. 23 update reads.
Some of the foreign powersâ efforts include laundering deceptive content through prominent figures or releasing fabricated âleaksâ intended to appear controversial. While AI has helped accelerate certain aspects of foreign influence operations targeting the United States, the intelligence community notes that AI has yet to revolutionize these tactics.
While Chinaâs activity has been more generalâseeking to shape global views of China and amplifying divisive U.S. political issuesâIran and Russiaâs efforts have been using AI to create content more directly related to American elections.
Russia has generated the most AI content related to the U.S. election, the intelligence community report states. Moscowâs efforts span across text, images, audio, and video mediums. The Kremlinâs actions involve spreading conspiratorial narratives and AI-generated content of prominent U.S. figures aimed at deepening divides on issues like immigration.
Iran, on the other hand, has used AI to generate social media posts and inauthentic news articles for websites posing as legitimate news sources. Such content, appearing in both English and Spanish, has targeted American voters across the political spectrum, particularly focusing on divisive issues such as the Israel-Gaza conflict and the U.S. presidential candidates.
Chinaâs use of AI in its influence operations is primarily focused on shaping perceptions of China rather than directly influencing the U.S. election, per the report. Chinese actors have also employed AI-generated content, such as fake news anchors and social media profiles, to amplify domestic U.S. political issues like drug use, immigration, and abortion, without explicitly backing any candidate.
In its Sept. 6 election security update, the intelligence community stated that, at the time, China was mostly focused on influencing down-ballot races and was not yet attempting to influence the presidential race.
The goal of the foreign actors remains more focused on influencing perceptions rather than directly interfering in the actual election process, the latest report states.
The report warns that adversaries will likely continue ramping up AI-driven disinformation campaigns as election day nears, posing a risk to U.S. democratic processes.
Even if the content is obviously fake or of low quality, Rutledge said that the messages can still be persuasive if they confirm peopleâs political biases.
âMany arenât sure they can sort through the garbage they know will be polluting campaign-related content,â Lee Rainie, director of the Digital Future Center, said in a statement.
In a testament to the potential impact of AI-driven content on elections, 69 percent of survey respondents told the center they are not confident most voters can differentiate between fabricated and authentic photos, with similar percentages expressing concern about othersâ ability to detect fake audio and video.
Austin Alonzo contributed to this report.
Original News Source Link – Epoch Times
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