As we all know India is going through Lok Sabha Polls 2024 and a recent report released by Microsoft has raised alarms about China’s potential use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) to interfere with upcoming elections. The tech giant highlighted that such AI-generated content could also impact elections in countries like the United States and South Korea.

According to Microsoft, China is likely to produce and distribute AI-generated content through social media platforms to sway public opinion in its favor during the important elections. ()

The content will be in the form of memes, videos, and audio, aiming to support China’s positions. It further said that however, the possibility of affecting the general elections by these stuffs would be possibly low. ()

Microsoft’s ‘Same targets, new playbooks: East Asia threat actors employ unique methods’ report observed significant cyber and influence trends from China and North Korea since June 2023.

These trends indicate an escalation in efforts to influence target areas, including countries in the South Pacific Islands, regional adversaries in the South China Sea region, and the US defence industrial base.

This is obvious your mind may be asking the answer to this question. If so, it is here. Chinese influence campaigns have been evolving, particularly in the world of AI-generated or AI-enhanced content.

Microsoft noted that these campaigns are becoming more sophisticated in their efforts to manipulate public discourse. They are not only amplifying AI-generated media but also creating their videos, memes, and audio content to advance strategic narratives.

Despite unchanged geopolitical priorities, China has intensified its focus on targets and increased the sophistication of its influence operations (IO) attacks. These activities of China trigger concerns about the potential impact on global stability and democratic processes.

The report discussed the activity of a Chinese cyber actor known as Flax Typhoon. It targeted entities related to US-Philippines military exercises in 2023. This actor has also been linked to targeting entities in the Philippines, Hong Kong, India, and the United States.

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