Cybercrime - USA stops disinformation campaign at online service X
The USA stopped a Russian disinformation campaign on the online service X, according to the Justice Department. In this campaign, artificial intelligence (AI) supported bots - computer programs - were used to create fake profiles on X, the US Justice Department announced on Tuesday.
Two Internet domains were seized by officials and 968 profiles were searched. Russian authorities are believed to have used these domains to create a "Bot-Farm" with AI and to spread disinformation in the USA and other countries. The "Bot-Farm" disseminated several false representations on X.
Bot-Farm to Influence US Elections
The "Bot-Farm" used AI elements to create fictitious profiles. These profiles often claimed to belong to people in the USA. The operators then used these profiles to disseminate messages supporting the objectives of the Russian government, the US Justice Department further explained.
The goal was to sow discord in the USA and elsewhere. The project was developed by a high-ranking editor of the Russian state broadcaster RT, financed by the Kremlin, and supported by the Russian security service FSB.
FBI Director Christopher Wray stated that the US actions were a novelty in the dismantling of a Russia-backed generative AI-assisted Social Media Bot-Farm.
Given important elections this year - for instance, in the USA in early November - experts have expressed concerns about increasing cybercrime. They have specifically voiced concerns that AI can produce deceptive content in seconds and in large quantities.
The disinformation campaign, orchestrated by Russia, involved the use of a Bot-Farm to influence US elections, as revealed by the US Justice Department. This Bot-Farm leveraged artificial intelligence to create and manage fictitious profiles, spreading misinformation and supporting Russian government objectives on X.
The dismantling of this Russia-backed Bot-Farm, aid by AI technology, sets a precedent in the fight against disinformation campaigns, as highlighted by FBI Director Christopher Wray.
