University of Kwazulu-Natal

China Linked Spamouflage Network Mimics Merit Street Media

Bonisiwe Shabane
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china linked spamouflage network mimics merit street media

Washington — When he first emerged on social media, the user known as Harlan claimed to be a New Yorker and an Army veteran who supported Donald Trump for president. Harlan said he was 29, and his profile picture showed a smiling, handsome young man. A few months later, Harlan underwent a transformation. Now, he claimed to be 31 and from Florida. New research into Chinese disinformation networks targeting American voters shows Harlan's claims were as fictitious as his profile picture, which analysts think was created using artificial intelligence. As voters prepare to cast their ballots this fall, China has been making its own plans, reportedly cultivating networks of fake social media users designed to mimic Americans.

Whoever or wherever he really is, Harlan is a small part of a larger effort by U.S. adversaries to use social media to influence and upend America’s political debate. The account was traced back to Spamouflage, a Chinese disinformation group, by analysts at Graphika, a New York-based firm that tracks online networks. Known to online researchers for several years, Spamouflage earned its moniker through its habit of spreading large amounts of seemingly unrelated content alongside disinformation. When he first emerged on social media, the user known as Harlan claimed to be a New Yorker and an Army veteran who supported Donald Trump for president. Harlan said he was 29, and his profile picture showed a smiling, handsome young man.

A few months later, Harlan underwent a transformation. Now, he claimed to be 31 and from Florida. New research into Chinese disinformation networks targeting American voters shows Harlan’s claims were as fictitious as his profile picture, which analysts think was created using artificial intelligence. As voters prepare to cast their ballots this fall, China has been making its own plans, cultivating networks of fake social media users designed to mimic Americans. Whoever or wherever he really is, Harlan is a small part of a larger effort by U.S. adversaries to use social media to influence and upend America’s political debate.

The account was traced back to Spamouflage, a Chinese disinformation group, by analysts at Graphika, a New York-based firm that tracks online networks. Known to online researchers for several years, Spamouflage earned its moniker through its habit of spreading large amounts of seemingly unrelated content alongside disinformation. When he first emerged on social media, the user known as Harlan claimed to be a New Yorker and an Army veteran who supported Donald Trump for president. Harlan said he was 29, and his profile picture showed a smiling, handsome young man. A few months later, Harlan underwent a transformation. Now, he claimed to be 31 and from Florida.

New research into Chinese disinformation networks targeting American voters shows Harlan's claims were as fictitious as his profile picture, which analysts think was created using artificial intelligence. As voters prepare to cast their ballots this fall, China has been making its own plans, cultivating networks of fake social media users designed to mimic Americans. Whoever or wherever he really is, Harlan is a small part of a larger effort by U.S. adversaries to use social media to influence and upend America's political debate. The account was traced back to Spamouflage, a Chinese disinformation group, by analysts at Graphika, a New York-based firm that tracks online networks. Known to online researchers for several years, Spamouflage earned its moniker through its habit of spreading large amounts of seemingly unrelated content alongside disinformation.

China is stepping up its game in the world of online influence. They’re creating fake social media accounts that look like real Americans. These accounts spread messages about hot-button political topics in the U.S. One of these fake accounts belonged to “Harlan.” At first, Harlan said he was a 29-year-old New Yorker who liked Trump. Later, he changed his story and said he was 31 and from Florida. But Harlan wasn’t real at all.

He was part of a Chinese group called Spamouflage. Spamouflage makes lots of fake accounts. They post about things like gun control, crime, and race. They also talk about the war in Gaza. These accounts don’t create much new content. Instead, they share posts from far-left and far-right American users.

Washington — When he first emerged on social media, the user known as Harlan claimed to be a New Yorker and an Army veteran who supported Donald Trump for president. Harlan said he was 29, and his profile picture showed a smiling, handsome young man. A few months later, Harlan underwent a transformation. Now, he claimed to be 31 and from Florida. New research into Chinese disinformation networks targeting American voters shows Harlan's claims were as fictitious as his profile picture, which analysts think was created using artificial intelligence. As voters prepare to cast their ballots this fall, China has been making its own plans, cultivating networks of fake social media users designed to mimic Americans.

Whoever or wherever he really is, Harlan is a small part of a larger effort by U.S. adversaries to use social media to influence and upend America’s political debate. The account was traced back to Spamouflage, a Chinese disinformation group, by analysts at Graphika, a New York-based firm that tracks online networks. Known to online researchers for several years, Spamouflage earned its moniker through its habit of spreading large amounts of seemingly unrelated content alongside disinformation. What is Canada’s new colour-coded alert system and how it will ensure public safety during extreme weather Canada launches new alert system for extreme weather; Colour-coded system marks shift to impact-based forecasting

Canadian Olympic swimming champion Penny Oleksiak suspended for two years over anti-doping whereabouts failures Who is Colleen Jones? Two-time World champion curler and veteran Canadian broadcaster dies at 65 What exactly is the Canada Pension Plan? New CPP payments rolling out nationwide on November 26; Check all the payment dates of 2025-26 - Why is Quebec not part of CPP? Copyright 2024 The Associated Press.

All rights reserved FILE - A woman walks with her ballot to a vacant voting booth at City Hall in San Francisco, March 5, 2024. (AP Photo/Eric Risberg, File) WASHINGTON – When he first emerged on social media, the user known as Harlan claimed to be a New Yorker and an Army veteran who supported Donald Trump for president. Harlan said he was 29, and his profile picture showed a smiling, handsome young man. A few months later, Harlan underwent a transformation.

Now, he claimed to be 31 and from Florida. New research into Chinese disinformation networks targeting American voters shows Harlan's claims were as fictitious as his profile picture, which analysts think was created using artificial intelligence. By Olivier Guillard, a specialist in Asian issues, research associate at the Institut d'études de géopolitique appliquée, a researcher at CERIAS (Université du Québec à Montréal, Canada), Director of Information at CRISIS24 (Paris), and... Olivier Guillard, China-linked 'Spamouflage' network and the US November election, Institut d'études de géopolitique appliquée, Paris, September 18, 2024. The views expressed are solely the responsibility of the author. The illustrative image, which is free of rights, was chosen by the editorial team.

The Chinese communist regime's disinformation networks on social media are employing fake accounts to impersonate Americans, attack US candidates, and spread divisive content as the November presidential election approaches [1]. The Chinese Communist Party's (CCP) social media influence operation is part of a disinformation campaign that analysts have dubbed "Spamouflage" or "Dragonbridge." "Spamouflage'' [2] is an influence operation that US company Graphika [3] has monitored since 2019. It is active across more than 40 online platforms where it employs inauthentic accounts to seed and amplify videos and cartoons that promote pro-China and anti-Western narratives. Based on open-source indicators and assessments shared by industry partners, Graphika attributes this activity with high confidence to Chinese state-linked actors. According to specialists, Chinese state-linked influence operation (IO) Spamouflage has become more aggressive in its efforts to influence US political conversations ahead of the 2024 presidential election.

This includes expanding its use of personas that impersonate US voters on social media platforms and spreading divisive narratives about sensitive social issues in the United States. "Spamouflage's tactics have evolved over the last five years, including engaging with broader geopolitical topics, producing content in multiple languages across mainstream and alternative social media platforms, experimenting with persona building, and leveraging AI...

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