Russia bets on chaos: US warned of operation ahead of elections

US intelligence has warned of a new Russian disinformation campaign ahead of the Congressional elections. The goal is to exacerbate social and political divisions in the US. The campaign centers on AI-generated videos styled after CNN, BBC, and The New York Times publications, accusing Democrats of corruption and antisemitism. The campaign is linked to Operation Matryoshka.

US intelligence has warned of a new Russian disinformation campaign that has intensified ahead of the November Congressional elections. According to The New York Times, the Kremlin authorized a digital influence campaign aimed not at hacking election systems but at exacerbating political and social divisions within American society. The key tool has been AI-generated videos styled after CNN, BBC, and The New York Times publications. The videos accused Democrats of corruption and antisemitism. Among the targets is Democratic Senator Jon Ossoff of Georgia. Research firm Graphika linked the activity to Operation Matryoshka. One fake video attributed to actress Jamie Lee Curtis criticism of Democrats on transgender issues; her representative denied the content. The video garnered about 200,000 views on X. Experts expect activity to increase as the elections approach. US intelligence agencies are also monitoring possible activity by Iran and China.