Artificial Intelligence, the latest weapon in the Russian information operations playbook

A recent ISD investigation unveiled a coordinated campaign of at least 64 accounts likely using content generated by ChatGPT to undermine support for Alexey Navalny (the jailed Russian opposition leader), as well as his associate Maria Pevchikh and their organisation, the Anti-Corruption Foundation (ACF). In an article about fake celebrity cameos– the latest in Kremlin tactics–, the New York Times draws on our Dispatch to explain how AI is speeding up the production and dissemination of information operations.

Even though ISD has not found evidence to conclusively attribute the campaign to any particular actor, this investigation presents an example of how generative AI is being used in information operations and the detection challenges it presents for general users, researchers and regulators.

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