China will use AI to disrupt US, India elections: Microsoft
Microsoft has issued a warning about potential plans by China to interfere in the forthcoming elections in the US, South Korea, and India. The tech giant's threat intelligence team anticipates that Chinese state-supported cyber groups, along with North Korean cyber actors to a lesser extent, will target these significant elections. "As populations in India, South Korea, and the US head to the polls, we are likely to see Chinese cyber and influence actors work toward targeting these elections," said Microsoft.
China's AI-driven disinformation campaigns on social media
Microsoft has revealed that China plans to create and distribute AI-generated content on social media platforms to influence election outcomes. Although the current impact of such content on public opinion is minimal, Microsoft warns of China's increasing experimentation with AI-enhanced memes, videos, and audio. The tech giant believes these could become a powerful tool in upcoming high-profile elections.
Previous AI-driven disinformation campaign in Taiwan
The report also highlighted China's previous attempt at an AI-driven disinformation campaign during Taiwan's presidential election in January. This marked the first instance of a state-supported entity using AI-created content to influence a foreign election. A Beijing-backed group, known as Storm 1376 or Spamouflage, was particularly active during this period, posting counterfeit content on YouTube and creating AI-generated memes about the winning candidate.
AI-created TV news anchors and social media exploitation
The report also underscored the rising use of AI-created TV news anchors spreading unverified claims about candidates. These news anchors were developed using the CapCut tool by ByteDance, a Chinese company that owns TikTok. Furthermore, Microsoft reported that Beijing-supported actors are exploiting social media accounts to pose divisive questions and understand issues polarizing US voters. This is possibly as an intelligence-gathering strategy targeting voters ahead of the US Presidential election.
Microsoft's response to past security breaches
Microsoft's warning coincides with a recent review by a White House-appointed board, which found that Microsoft could have prevented Chinese hackers from infiltrating US government emails via its Microsoft Exchange Online software last year. The US Cyber Safety Review Board labeled the incident a "cascade of security failures" at Microsoft. In response to these breaches and other similar cybersecurity attacks, Microsoft is now striving to revamp its software security through its newly launched Secure Future Initiative (SFI).
