200,000 views for one fake: The Russian operation that worries the US

US intelligence assesses that Russia is running a disinformation campaign ahead of the November midterm elections, aiming to deepen chaos and division. Researchers have identified fake videos on social media, using artificial intelligence to create content against Democratic candidates. Iran and China are also under surveillance.

US intelligence assesses that Russia is running a disinformation campaign on social media ahead of the November midterm elections, aiming to deepen chaos and division in the United States. The assessments, gathered in recent months, indicate Kremlin approval for a digital influence campaign, but no attempt to tamper with voting machines has been identified. Researchers have recently identified campaigns using artificial intelligence to create fake videos featuring Hollywood celebrities commenting on Senate races. The main goal is not to help a particular party, but to exacerbate distrust. However, the campaigns attributed to Russia have so far only attacked Democratic candidates. Meanwhile, Iran and China are under surveillance for fear of influence operations. Iran, which has been at war with the US since February, has previously attempted to spread propaganda against Trump. China may consider activity against candidates it views as hostile, but is expected to refrain for fear of a US response. A network of accounts linked to the Kremlin published fake videos on X and BlueSky, containing baseless claims against Democratic candidates. The videos were designed to appear as if produced by CNN, BBC, and the New York Times. Graphika attributed the posts to operations "Operation Overload" and "Matryoshka." One post garnered nearly 200,000 views.