Microsoft has exposed cyber attacks and disinformation campaigns from foreign adversaries in the lead up to the U.S. presidential election that go beyond the tactics deployed four years ago.
On the eve of Election Day, the threats aren’t letting up.
“I do think people should expect that the noise levels — the sort of chaos and confusion — will continue through Election Day and then most certainly in the days after,” Ginny Badanes, the general manager of Microsoft’s Democracy Forward program, told the POLITICO Tech podcast.
In recent months, Russian disinformation campaigns designed to disparage Vice President Kamala Harris have experimented with artificial intelligence to create or enhance fake content. And Iranian hackers have successfully infiltrated former President Donald Trump’s campaign.
Microsoft’s election defense efforts focus on these foreign adversaries because they “have the funding to be persistent over time” and are willing to “pick up on whatever narratives are working, regardless of the source,” Badanes said.
But many of the rumors and conspiracy theories that emerge in the days ahead are expected to originate from American political groups. Trump and his allies have preemptively churned up claims about voter fraud in swing states like Pennsylvania.
But many of the rumors and conspiracy theories that emerge in the days ahead are expected to originate from American political groups. Trump and his allies have preemptively churned up claims about voter fraud…
“We feel like the American public deserves more information, not less.” Listen to the full interview.
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@7G3GHNGLibertarian1yr1Y
I’m more worried about censorship than disinformation. Tech companies and academics ‘cracking down’ sounds like an excuse to silence conservative voices. Microsoft might mean well, but where’s the line?
This is all part of a larger problem. Foreign actors are just picking up on divisive narratives that already exist. If Americans stopped feeding these rumors, there wouldn’t be much to exploit
Agreed. Russia and Iran don’t care who wins – they just want to divide us. We’re practically handing them the ammunition when we spread conspiracy theories ourselves.
@7G3GHNGLibertarian1yr1Y
But isn’t it a bit suspicious that tech companies and media are always the ones ‘deciding’ what counts as disinformation? It feels like selective policing, and no one’s holding them accountable
It’s not about silencing anyone – it’s about stopping the spread of outright lies. People can still have opinions, but there’s no room for disinformation, especially in something as critical as a presidential election.
What worries me is that our democracy is so fragile that foreign trolls can manipulate it this easily. We should be building trust in our institutions rather than tearing them down with every election cycle.
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