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Foreign Powers Target Elections with Online Propaganda
🇸🇪 Sweden /Elections & Politics

Foreign Powers Target Elections with Online Propaganda

From Dagens Nyheter · () Swedish

Translated from Swedish, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Named sources Context piece
  • Foreign actors, particularly Russia, are using sophisticated propaganda campaigns to influence elections and sow discord globally.
  • These campaigns employ AI-generated content, fake news websites mimicking legitimate sources, and coordinated social media accounts to spread disinformation.
  • Swedish authorities and researchers are actively tracking these influence operations, highlighting the centralized nature of Russian efforts and the exploitation of societal vulnerabilities.

Foreign powers are actively manipulating online spaces to influence elections and incite unrest, with Russia identified as a primary actor. These influence campaigns leverage low-quality, AI-generated content, known as "slopaganda," and sophisticated tactics like "doppelganger" websites that perfectly replicate legitimate news outlets to deceive millions.

The Ukrainian research group Tua has mapped numerous accounts across platforms like Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube, which collectively boast millions of followers. These accounts disseminate politically charged content, often with thousands of likes and comments, including from Swedish citizens. Examples cited include content that allegedly incited violent riots in Sweden and other European nations, such as the "LVU campaign" and Easter riots in Sweden, as well as unrest in Southport, UK, and influencing elections in Germany, France, Hungary, and Moldova.

We know that foreign actors follow the debate in Sweden to find sensitive issues and vulnerable groups to target.

— James PammentJames Pamment, head of the Psychological Defence Research Institute at Lund University, explains how foreign actors identify targets for influence campaigns.

James Pamment, head of the Psychological Defence Research Institute at Lund University, explained that these operations are highly centralized, with directives originating from the top echelons of the Russian regime. The goal is often to sway public opinion or voting patterns in target countries. "We know that foreign actors follow the debate in Sweden to find sensitive issues and vulnerable groups to target," Pamment stated. The process involves analyzing demographics, societal problems, media habits, and current events to maximize impact, with specific orders passed to those executing the campaign.

Sergei Kiriyenko oversees Russia's international digital information warfare, commanding a budget exceeding 6.5 billion Swedish kronor. This complex system involves companies, freelancers, criminals, and state actors working in concert to advance Russia's messaging and achieve Kremlin objectives. The Swedish Military Intelligence and Security Service has specifically highlighted the risk of Russian interference in upcoming Swedish elections in its latest annual report, underscoring the ongoing threat.

The work is very centralized. The order can be to get more people in this country to think this way or vote that way.

— James PammentJames Pamment describes the top-down nature of Russian influence operations.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Dagens Nyheter in Swedish. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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