In the US, the FBI has announced that they have taken action against an operation that is said to spread disinformation in the US, as well as other countries. The US says that operation was driven by Russian state actors and AI to manage close to 1000 bot accounts on X.
The US found 2 domains, and suspended a number of fake social accounts. Dismantling this network was achieved by seizing control of mlrtr.com and otanmail.com, the 2 domains. These domains were what powered the bot farm- they hosted the servers that created and managed the bot activities.
“The social media bot farm used elements of AI to create fictitious social media profiles — often purporting to belong to individuals in the United States — which the operators then used to promote messages in support of Russian government objectives, according to affidavits unsealed today,” they announced.
How Did This Happen?
The bot farm, backed by the Russian government, used advanced AI to create fake profiles that appeared convincingly real. These profiles were then used to distribute misinformation and manipulate public opinion on various political and social issues.
The operation was linked to the Russian state-run news agency RT and was created to shut down any narratives that were not in support of the views of Russian government.
The US and the supporting nations stated in the official document that Russia has to begin seizing all the information, records, evidence to support the case. There has also been an approval by X to access all the evidence and information from the bot farm.
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What Are Bot Farms?
A bot farm is a collection of internet-connected programmes, or “bots,” designed to perform automated tasks. In this case, the bots were programmed to mimic real human interactions on social media platforms to sway public opinion and distribute Russian propaganda.
These AI-powered bots could generate posts, like, share content, and even engage in conversations to for those political narratives to spread, while it just looks like regular community discourse.
They used profiles that looked real using AI, with texts and word choice that comes off as quite human-like
What Did The US Officials Comment?
Attorney Gary Restaino, District of Arizona commented, “We support all civic engagement, civil dialogue, and a robust exchange of ideas,” “But those ideas should be generated by Americans, for Americans. The disruption announced today protects us from those who use unlawful means to seek to mislead our citizens and our communities.”
The attorney’s argument is that differing views are welcome to be shared on socials, however, they should be authentically generated, and with the rise of deepfakes, its important that all views shared online come from an authentic place, and not as a way to influence opinions the way the bot farms had.
Acting US Attorney Morris Pasqual, Northern Illinois, closed, affirming the action being taken, in saying, “Multiple U.S. and foreign governmental components worked closely and efficiently to address the threat and develop and execute a mitigation strategy. Through vigorous enforcement efforts and collaborative international partnerships, the Justice Department works tirelessly to disrupt criminal cyber activity.”
