International
US voters targeted by Chinese influence online, researchers say
A Chinese social media influence operation is impersonating US voters, denigrating US politicians and pushing divisive messages ahead of the Nov 5 presidential election in the United States, new research by intelligence company Graphika showed. The
The campaign is part of a known Chinese state-linked effort analysts have dubbed "Spamouflage" or "Dragonbridge," which pushes a mixture of spam and targeted propaganda onto the internet.
Spamouflage has been active since at least 2017 but has stepped up its activities as the election approaches, according to experts. It has leveraged thousands of accounts across more than 50 websites, forums and social media platforms.
"The key takeaway from this report," said Jack Stubbs, who manages Graphika's research team, is that Spamouflage has "become more aggressive in its efforts to infiltrate and sway US political conversations."
"This matters because it shows Chinese influence operations targeting the US are evolving, engaging in more advanced deceptive behaviours, and directly targeting these organic but hyper-sensitive rifts in society," Stubbs added.
