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js-stickybar\" readability=\"0.82\"> <button class=\"stickybar__close js-stickybar-close\" aria-controls=\"stickybar\"> <svg class=\"icon icon--close\" width=\"21\" height=\"22\" viewBox=\"0 0 21 22\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"m.822.518-.805.805L9.695 11 .017 20.678l.805.805 9.678-9.678 9.677 9.678.806-.805L11.305 11l9.678-9.677-.806-.805-9.677 9.677L.822.518Z\" fill=\"currentColor\" \/><\/svg> <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Close<\/span> <\/button> <\/section>\n<article class=\"single-article content\">\n<div class=\"single-article__container js-single-article-content\">\n<header class=\"single-article__header \" readability=\"26.014198782961\">\n<div class=\"single-article__header-content\" readability=\"31.12676056338\">\n<p> Russian influence operations have picked up steam in the past two months, according to a Microsoft report. <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"single-article__cover-wrap\">\n<figure class=\"single-article__cover\"> <img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" fetchpriority=\"high\" width=\"640\" height=\"426\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/after-a-sleepy-primary-season-russia-enters-2024-u-s-election-fray.jpg?resize=640%2C426&ssl=1\" class=\"single-article__cover-image wp-post-image\" alt decoding=\"async\" fetchpriority=\"high\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/after-a-sleepy-primary-season-russia-enters-2024-u-s-election-fray-5.jpg 1920w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/after-a-sleepy-primary-season-russia-enters-2024-u-s-election-fray-5.jpg?resize=300,200 300w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/after-a-sleepy-primary-season-russia-enters-2024-u-s-election-fray-5.jpg?resize=768,512 768w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/after-a-sleepy-primary-season-russia-enters-2024-u-s-election-fray-5.jpg?resize=1024,683 1024w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/after-a-sleepy-primary-season-russia-enters-2024-u-s-election-fray-5.jpg?resize=1536,1024 1536w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/after-a-sleepy-primary-season-russia-enters-2024-u-s-election-fray-5.jpg?resize=600,400 600w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/after-a-sleepy-primary-season-russia-enters-2024-u-s-election-fray-5.jpg?resize=252,168 252w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/after-a-sleepy-primary-season-russia-enters-2024-u-s-election-fray-5.jpg?resize=506,337 506w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/after-a-sleepy-primary-season-russia-enters-2024-u-s-election-fray-5.jpg?resize=1013,675 1013w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/after-a-sleepy-primary-season-russia-enters-2024-u-s-election-fray-5.jpg?resize=1265,843 1265w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1013px) 100vw, 1013px\"><figcaption> The street artist Andrea Villa installs an anti-war poster depicting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, Russian President Vladimir Putin and U.S. President Joe Biden on April 16, 2024 in Turin, Italy. (Photo by Stefano Guidi\/Getty Images) <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/header>\n<div class=\"single-article__content\">\n<div class=\"single-article__content-inner has-drop-cap\"> <html readability=\"74.04620305651\"><body readability=\"149.48568520168\"><\/p>\n<p>Russian influence operations targeting the 2024 U.S. elections have ramped up in the past 45 days, using Telegram as a primary distribution channel to spread propaganda to influence debate over Ukraine policy, according to new <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bing.com\/?ref=aka&shorturl=ElectionsReport-April2024\">research<\/a> from Microsoft\u2019s Threat Analysis Center.<\/p>\n<p>The rise in observed activity represents a late start for Moscow compared to efforts in 2020 and 2016, something Microsoft attributed to an uncompetitive presidential primary season that saw Donald Trump and Joe Biden cruise to their respective nominations with minimal resistance. Unlike in 2016 and 2020, when one or both parties were ensconced in heavily contested and contentious intraparty primaries, this cycle presented little motivation and fewer opportunities for foreign nations to move the needle with meddling.<\/p>\n<p>That dynamic has changed as the race shifts to the general election, and Microsoft has tracked multiple groups targeting the U.S. elections and 70 different Russian-associated \u201cactivity sets\u201d worldwide pushing content and messaging in English, Spanish, French, Arabic, Finnish and other languages designed to degrade international support for Ukraine, portray President Volodymyr Zelenskyy as the head of a corrupt state and diminish the appetite of Western governments to further fund the Ukrainian war cause.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOftentimes when we\u2019re watching the activity that comes out of these actor sets, some people characterize it as they want to make chaos in the U.S. or they want to create problems for democracies. \u2026 With their messaging in regards to election 2024, it is absolutely about Ukraine policy,\u201d said Clint Watts, general manager of Microsoft\u2019s Threat Analysis Center.<\/p>\n<div class=\"ad ad--inline_1 \">\n<div class=\"ad__inner\"> <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Advertisement<\/span> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>Much of the content, including fake videos, news articles or explosive claims from sources identifying as whistleblowers or citizen journalists, is initially seeded on Telegram, which Watts said has become a primary distribution channel for Russian propaganda efforts since the start of the Ukraine invasion.<\/p>\n<p>Two groups in particular, tracked by Microsoft as Storm 1516 and Storm 1099, have relied on this approach, posting anti-Ukraine content on purpose-built Telegram channels that are then picked up by seemingly unaffiliated news outlets and websites with names like \u201cDC Weekly\u201d and \u201cMiami Chronicle\u201d that pose as local sources but are actually Russian cut-outs.<\/p>\n<p>Storm 1099 \u2014 otherwise known as Doppelganger \u2014 uses outlets that specifically target the United States, with names like \u201cElection Watch\u201d and \u201c50 States of Lie.\u201d These sites play up internal domestic divisions in U.S. society and politics, warning that \u201cAmerican elections have long since lost their democratic character\u201d and that the nation faces an \u201cunprecedented number of rebellions that could split the country in two.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/after-a-sleepy-primary-season-russia-enters-2024-u-s-election-fray.png?w=640&ssl=1\" alt><\/figure>\n<p>Watts said these Telegram channels function as \u201ca bridge by which [content] gets pushed into and reposted and amplified in social media, such that it moves from one social media platform to another.\u201d<\/p>\n<div class=\"ad ad--inline_1 \">\n<div class=\"ad__inner\"> <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Advertisement<\/span> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>That\u2019s a marked change from eight years ago, when platforms like Facebook and Twitter had built up mass general audiences that allowed for direct targeting in influence campaigns. Today, audiences are far more fragmented across different social media, something that has led to Russian groups using Telegram as a staging ground for content that can be micro-targeted to different audiences on different platforms. <\/p>\n<p>Microsoft\u2019s assessment that Russian operatives are laser focused on influencing Ukraine policy is backed up by several other sources, including Mandiant, which <a href=\"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/cozy-bear-russia-spearphishing-germany\/#:~:text=A%20hacking%20group%20linked%20to,to%20new%20research%20from%20Mandiant.\">found<\/a> a Russian hacking group targeting political parties in Germany in an effort to gain insights into policymaking on Ukraine. Rob Joyce, the former director of cybersecurity at NSA, told reporters in March that \u201cRussia is very motivated to make sure that the focus on support to Ukraine is disrupted.\u201d <\/p>\n<p>Russia has been by far the most prolific actor in the election interference space this cycle, with Microsoft also tracking activity from China, Iran and other countries, but not at nearly the same cadence or intensity. <\/p>\n<p>Moscow\u2019s disinformation operations continue to leverage both online and offline methods to spread damaging narratives. A campaign collectively known as the NABU leaks was carried out by Andrii Derkach, a former Ukrainian member of Parliament, in the lead-up to the 2020 elections. Those efforts were meant to discredit the Ukrainian National Anticorruption Bureau and spread rumors of current and former U.S. officials engaged in corruption, money laundering and political influence in Ukrainian politics.<\/p>\n<p>Derkach, who was<a href=\"https:\/\/home.treasury.gov\/news\/press-releases\/sm1232\"> sanctioned<\/a> by the U.S. Treasury Department for the NABU leaks campaign,<a href=\"https:\/\/www.justice.gov\/opa\/pr\/active-russian-agent-andrii-derkach-indicted-scheme-violate-sanctions-united-states\"> indicted<\/a> in 2022 for efforts to covertly influence the 2020 election and<a href=\"https:\/\/www.reuters.com\/world\/europe\/zelenskiy-strips-putin-ally-medvedchuk-three-others-ukrainian-citizenship-2023-01-11\/#:~:text=%22I%20have%20decided%20to%20terminate,in%20his%20nightly%20video%20address.\"> stripped<\/a> of his Ukrainian citizenship in 2023, had gone quiet since the start of the Ukraine invasion. <\/p>\n<div class=\"ad ad--inline_1 \">\n<div class=\"ad__inner\"> <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Advertisement<\/span> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>However, he<a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/SimonaMangiante\/status\/1745239534332440966?lang=en\"> reemerged in January<\/a> in an interview with a Belarusian media personality, reviving claims from the NABU leaks and seeking to implicate Biden in Ukrainian corruption at the same time that House Republicans were pursuing an impeachment inquiry against the president under the auspices of similar corruption claims. A key witness in that inquiry, an American-Israeli citizen named Alexander Smirnov who had previously served as a confidential human source for the FBI, was indicted in February on charges of being an agent of Russian intelligence.<\/p>\n<p>There doesn\u2019t yet appear to be solid evidence of Russian activity setting up the kind of hack-and-leak campaign that upended the 2016 U.S. presidential race. But Watts said in order to properly prepare such a campaign, Russian hackers \u201cneed to be hitting targets in the next 60 days\u201d to leave enough time to leak content ahead of November.<\/p>\n<p>Both Russia and China have been observed leveraging AI-generated media in their influence campaigns over the past year. Most notably, a Chinese group known as Spamouflage used the tools<a href=\"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/microsoft-ai-election-taiwan\/\"> to pump out<\/a> a steady stream of AI-generated memes and deepfake audio and video targeting different candidates and parties in the lead-up to elections in Taiwan.<br \/>However, while there is evidence that foreign influence groups continue to experiment with incorporating the technology into their campaigns, so far the fear that fully generated deepfake videos will cause mass deception among voters \u201chas not borne out,\u201d according to Microsoft\u2019s findings.<\/p>\n<p>In many cases, \u201caudiences gravitate toward and share disinformation\u201d that \u201cinvolve simple digital forgeries consistent with what influence actors over the last decade have regularly employed,\u201d the report stated, and such cheapfake content still regularly outpaces fully synthetic generative AI videos in terms of views and shares.<\/p>\n<div class=\"ad ad--inline_1 \">\n<div class=\"ad__inner\"> <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Advertisement<\/span> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>One area that does show promise is voice cloning \u2014 either to generate fake audio phone calls and messages or to overlay with authentic video footage. This tactic was used in the U.S., when a Democratic operative tied to the Dean Phillips presidential campaign used deepfake technology in January to <a href=\"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/biden-new-hampshire-robo-call-deepfake\/\">impersonate Biden and target his supporters<\/a> with messages urging them to stay away from the polls in the New Hampshire primary. Similar incidents have been observed in<a href=\"https:\/\/www.bloomberg.com\/news\/newsletters\/2023-10-04\/deepfakes-in-slovakia-preview-how-ai-will-change-the-face-of-elections\"> Slovakia<\/a> and Taiwan.<\/p>\n<p>Not surprisingly, Microsoft\u2019s research has found that the more familiar a person is to the general public, the less effective deepfakes tend to be. One scenario where such audio could be particularly effective is in personal or private settings, such as a phone call or direct message, where the target is isolated and more vulnerable to deception.<\/p>\n<p>That echoes what several state election officials and election security experts<a href=\"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/ai-election-wokers-training-deepfakes\/\"> have told<\/a> CyberScoop in previous interviews.<\/p>\n<p><\/body> <\/p>\n<footer class=\"single-article__footer\" readability=\"3.4010327022375\">\n<div class=\"author-card\" readability=\"13\">\n<div class=\"author-card__avatar\">\n<figure class=\"author-card__image-wrap\"> <img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"author-card__image\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/after-a-sleepy-primary-season-russia-enters-2024-u-s-election-fray-1.jpg?w=640&ssl=1\" alt=\"Derek B. Johnson\"> <\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><h4 class=\"author-card__name\">Written by Derek B. Johnson<\/h4>\n<p> Derek B. Johnson is a reporter at CyberScoop, where his beat includes cybersecurity, elections and the federal government. Prior to that, he has provided award-winning coverage of cybersecurity news across the public and private sectors for various publications since 2017. Derek has a bachelor\u2019s degree in print journalism from Hofstra University in New York and a master\u2019s degree in public policy from George Mason University in Virginia. <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"single-article__tags-container\">\n<h4 class=\"single-article__tags-title\">In This Story<\/h4>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/footer>\n<p> <\/html><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"single-article__ads js-single-article-sidebar\">\n<div class=\"ad ad--sidebar js-single-article-sidebar-5 ad--rightrail_1 \">\n<div class=\"ad__inner\"> <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Advertisement<\/span> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"ad ad--sidebar js-single-article-sidebar-4 ad--rightrail_2 \">\n<div class=\"ad__inner\"> <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Advertisement<\/span> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"ad ad--sidebar js-single-article-sidebar-3 ad--rightrail_3 \">\n<div class=\"ad__inner\"> <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Advertisement<\/span> <\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/article>\n<div class=\"popular-stories popular-stories--single-post\">\n<div class=\"popular-stories__container\">\n<h2 class=\"popular-stories__title\"> More Scoops <\/h2>\n<div class=\"popular-stories__stories\">\n<div class=\"popular-stories__cards\">\n<article class=\"post-item post-item--popular-stories-cards \" readability=\"20.533112582781\">\n<figure class=\"post-item__thumbnail\"> <a class=\"post-item__thumbnail-link\" href=\"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/ai-election-wokers-training-deepfakes\/\" tabindex=\"-1\"> <img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"477\" height=\"337\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/after-a-sleepy-primary-season-russia-enters-2024-u-s-election-fray-2.jpg?resize=477%2C337&ssl=1\" class=\"attachment-ratio-16-9-md size-ratio-16-9-md wp-post-image\" alt decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/after-a-sleepy-primary-season-russia-enters-2024-u-s-election-fray-6.jpg 1920w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/after-a-sleepy-primary-season-russia-enters-2024-u-s-election-fray-6.jpg?resize=300,212 300w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/after-a-sleepy-primary-season-russia-enters-2024-u-s-election-fray-6.jpg?resize=768,542 768w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/after-a-sleepy-primary-season-russia-enters-2024-u-s-election-fray-6.jpg?resize=1024,723 1024w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/after-a-sleepy-primary-season-russia-enters-2024-u-s-election-fray-6.jpg?resize=1536,1085 1536w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/after-a-sleepy-primary-season-russia-enters-2024-u-s-election-fray-6.jpg?resize=600,424 600w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/after-a-sleepy-primary-season-russia-enters-2024-u-s-election-fray-6.jpg?resize=238,168 238w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/after-a-sleepy-primary-season-russia-enters-2024-u-s-election-fray-6.jpg?resize=477,337 477w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/after-a-sleepy-primary-season-russia-enters-2024-u-s-election-fray-6.jpg?resize=956,675 956w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/after-a-sleepy-primary-season-russia-enters-2024-u-s-election-fray-6.jpg?resize=1194,843 1194w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 477px) 100vw, 477px\"> <\/a><figcaption class=\"screen-reader-text\"> Supporters of President Donald Trump demonstrate at a \u2018Stop the Steal\u2019 rally in front of the Maricopa County Elections Department office on November 7, 2020 in Phoenix, Arizona. (Photo by Mario Tama\/Getty Images) <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<header class=\"post-item__meta\" readability=\"1.7033898305085\">\n<h3 class=\"post-item__title\"> <a class=\"post-item__title-link\" href=\"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/ai-election-wokers-training-deepfakes\/\"> Training days: How officials are using AI to prepare election workers for voting chaos <\/a> <\/h3>\n<p> Election officials in Arizona and Minnesota are creating novel training exercises to combat AI-generated content this November. <\/p>\n<div class=\"post-item__byline\"> <span class=\"post-item__author\"> <span>By <\/span> <a class=\"post-item__author-link\" href=\"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/author\/derek-johnson\/\"> Derek B. Johnson <\/a> <\/span> <\/div>\n<p> <\/header>\n<p> <\/article>\n<article class=\"post-item post-item--popular-stories-cards \">\n<figure class=\"post-item__thumbnail\"> <a class=\"post-item__thumbnail-link\" href=\"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/tech-companies-pledge-to-protect-2024-elections-from-ai-generated-media\/\" tabindex=\"-1\"> <img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"252\" height=\"168\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/after-a-sleepy-primary-season-russia-enters-2024-u-s-election-fray-3.jpg?resize=252%2C168&ssl=1\" class=\"attachment-ratio-16-9-sm size-ratio-16-9-sm wp-post-image\" alt decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/after-a-sleepy-primary-season-russia-enters-2024-u-s-election-fray-7.jpg 1920w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/after-a-sleepy-primary-season-russia-enters-2024-u-s-election-fray-7.jpg?resize=300,200 300w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/after-a-sleepy-primary-season-russia-enters-2024-u-s-election-fray-7.jpg?resize=768,512 768w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/after-a-sleepy-primary-season-russia-enters-2024-u-s-election-fray-7.jpg?resize=1024,683 1024w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/after-a-sleepy-primary-season-russia-enters-2024-u-s-election-fray-7.jpg?resize=1536,1024 1536w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/after-a-sleepy-primary-season-russia-enters-2024-u-s-election-fray-7.jpg?resize=600,400 600w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/after-a-sleepy-primary-season-russia-enters-2024-u-s-election-fray-7.jpg?resize=252,168 252w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/after-a-sleepy-primary-season-russia-enters-2024-u-s-election-fray-7.jpg?resize=506,337 506w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/after-a-sleepy-primary-season-russia-enters-2024-u-s-election-fray-7.jpg?resize=1013,675 1013w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/after-a-sleepy-primary-season-russia-enters-2024-u-s-election-fray-7.jpg?resize=1265,843 1265w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 252px) 100vw, 252px\"> <\/a><figcaption class=\"screen-reader-text\"> In this photo illustration, Open AI\u2019s newly released text-to-video \u201cSora\u201d tool is advertised on their website on a monitor in Washington, DC, on February 16, 2024. (Photo by Drew Angerer \/ AFP) <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<header class=\"post-item__meta\">\n<h3 class=\"post-item__title\"> <a class=\"post-item__title-link\" href=\"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/tech-companies-pledge-to-protect-2024-elections-from-ai-generated-media\/\"> Tech companies pledge to protect 2024 elections from AI-generated media <\/a> <\/h3>\n<div class=\"post-item__byline\"> <span class=\"post-item__author\"> <span>By <\/span> <a class=\"post-item__author-link\" href=\"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/author\/derek-johnson\/\"> Derek B. Johnson <\/a> <\/span> <\/div>\n<p> <\/header>\n<p> <\/article>\n<article class=\"post-item post-item--popular-stories-cards \">\n<figure class=\"post-item__thumbnail\"> <a class=\"post-item__thumbnail-link\" href=\"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/china-midterms-elections-influence-nord-hacking\/\" tabindex=\"-1\"> <img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"252\" height=\"168\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/after-a-sleepy-primary-season-russia-enters-2024-u-s-election-fray-4.jpg?resize=252%2C168&ssl=1\" class=\"attachment-ratio-16-9-sm size-ratio-16-9-sm wp-post-image\" alt decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/after-a-sleepy-primary-season-russia-enters-2024-u-s-election-fray-8.jpg 1920w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/after-a-sleepy-primary-season-russia-enters-2024-u-s-election-fray-8.jpg?resize=300,200 300w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/after-a-sleepy-primary-season-russia-enters-2024-u-s-election-fray-8.jpg?resize=768,512 768w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/after-a-sleepy-primary-season-russia-enters-2024-u-s-election-fray-8.jpg?resize=1024,683 1024w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/after-a-sleepy-primary-season-russia-enters-2024-u-s-election-fray-8.jpg?resize=1536,1024 1536w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/after-a-sleepy-primary-season-russia-enters-2024-u-s-election-fray-8.jpg?resize=600,400 600w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/after-a-sleepy-primary-season-russia-enters-2024-u-s-election-fray-8.jpg?resize=252,168 252w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/after-a-sleepy-primary-season-russia-enters-2024-u-s-election-fray-8.jpg?resize=506,337 506w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/after-a-sleepy-primary-season-russia-enters-2024-u-s-election-fray-8.jpg?resize=1013,675 1013w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/after-a-sleepy-primary-season-russia-enters-2024-u-s-election-fray-8.jpg?resize=1265,843 1265w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 252px) 100vw, 252px\"> <\/a><figcaption class=\"screen-reader-text\"> A large screen displays United States President Joe Biden, left, and China\u2019s President Xi Jinping during a virtual summit as people walk by during the evening CCTV news broadcast outside a shopping mall on November 16, 2021 in Beijing, China. (Photo by Kevin Frayer\/Getty Images) <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<header class=\"post-item__meta\">\n<h3 class=\"post-item__title\"> <a class=\"post-item__title-link\" href=\"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/china-midterms-elections-influence-nord-hacking\/\"> Chinese influence operation seeks to sow political discord, \u2018aggressively\u2019 targets U.S. midterms <\/a> <\/h3>\n<div class=\"post-item__byline\"> <span class=\"post-item__author\"> <span>By <\/span> <a class=\"post-item__author-link\" href=\"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/author\/aj-vicens\/\"> AJ Vicens <\/a> <\/span> <\/div>\n<p> <\/header>\n<p> <\/article>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> <\/div>\n<p>\n<\/div>\n<p> <\/p>\n<section class=\"latest-podcasts\">\n<h2 class=\"latest-podcasts__title\"> Latest Podcasts\t<\/h2>\n<\/section>\n<div class=\"top-categories\">\n<div class=\"top-categories__container\">\n<h3 class=\"top-categories__category-title\">Government<\/h3>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"top-categories__container\">\n<h3 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election<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[235,271,78,1410,1411,1685,1412,944,302,625,836],"tags":[236,277,86,1416,1417,1688,1418,946,306,630,839],"class_list":["post-3138","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-ai","category-china","category-cybersecurity","category-deep-fakes","category-deepfakes","category-disinformation","category-election-2024","category-election-interference","category-geopolitics","category-microsoft","category-taiwan","tag-ai","tag-china","tag-cybersecurity","tag-deep-fakes","tag-deepfakes","tag-disinformation","tag-election-2024","tag-election-interference","tag-geopolitics","tag-microsoft","tag-taiwan"],"featured_image_urls":{"full":"","thumbnail":"","medium":"","medium_large":"","large":"","1536x1536":"","2048x2048":"","chromenews-featured":"","chromenews-large":"","chromenews-medium":""},"author_info":{"display_name":"Cyber 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{"id":3138,"date":"2024-04-17T11:00:00","date_gmt":"2024-04-17T16:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/?p=80168"},"modified":"2024-04-17T11:00:00","modified_gmt":"2024-04-17T16:00:00","slug":"after-a-sleepy-primary-season-russia-enters-2024-u-s-election-fray","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/index.php\/2024\/04\/17\/after-a-sleepy-primary-season-russia-enters-2024-u-s-election-fray\/","title":{"rendered":"After a sleepy primary season, Russia enters 2024 U.S. election fray"},"content":{"rendered":"