According to a report from cybersecurity firm Recorded Future’s Insikt Group, attempts by foreign governments and nation-state actors to influence politics have “likely only intensified” since the 2020 presidential election. The report points out indications of “malign influence operations” by Russia and China.
Another report, by cybersecurity firm Trellix, highlighted a “surge in malicious email activity targeting county election workers in the key battleground states of Arizona and Pennsylvania coinciding with these states’ primary elections.” Hackers’ phishing campaign sought access to poll workers’ systems, according to the report. Trellix has not identified the parties behind the emails.
As The Hill reports, cybersecurity experts caution that Russian President Vladimir Putin may increase his digital meddling in the midterms in response to U.S. support for Ukraine. Kremlin-linked hackers have claimed responsibility for recent attacks against U.S. state government and airport websites, and James Turgal, vice president of cyber consultancy Optic, said that may have only been a warmup for the election.
Federal officials are sounding the alarm as well. As the Associated Press reports, a senior FBI official told reporters that Russia is signal-boosting divisive topics in hopes of reducing confidence in American elections, while an unclassified intelligence advisory says China is likely trying to sway specific races to “hinder candidates perceived to be particularly adversarial to Beijing.”
White House National Cyber Director Chris Inglis recently told CNBC that government agencies and the private sector have taken steps to fend off foreign adversaries’ bids to undermine the election.
As Reuters reports, U.S. cybersecurity and law enforcement officials say domestic disinformation campaigns are shaping up as larger worries than overseas meddling ahead of the Nov. 8 elections. One federal official pinpointed the many reported incidents of threats or harassment against election workers by Trump supporters since 2020.