New court documents reveal that Russia is keeping a very, very long list of influencers to spread its propaganda.

The Russian disinformation plot revealed in a Justice Department indictment this week may just be the tip of the iceberg, according to newly unsealed court documents.

On Wednesday, the DOJ announced it would seize 32 internet domains linked to a larger Kremlin scheme to promote disinformation and influence the 2024 election. The Russian campaign, known as Doppelganger, uses AI-generated content to create “fake news” boosted through social media with the aim of electing Donald Trump.

Of particular note, the documents released Wednesday included an affidavit that noted a Russian company is keeping a list of more than 2,800 influencers world wide, about one-fifth of whom are based in the United States, to monitor and potentially groom to spread Russian propaganda. The affidavit does not mention the full list of influencers, but is still a terrifying indicator of how deep the Russian plot to interfere in U.S. politics really goes.

  • shastaxc@lemm.ee
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    4 months ago

    You think Microsoft can’t keep tabs on what’s said in discord servers? hmm nevermind, looks like that purchase did not go through. Still, they can absolutely monitor discord chat, and even voice chat. It is relatively common these days to have voice recordings transcribed automatically into text files, saved, and searchable. Even video games do that these days. Overwatch in particular does this for certain because they announced so with the release of Overwatch 2. I would assume all Blizzard games do this by now.

    • forrcaho@lemmy.world
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      4 months ago

      Oh, sure, whatever corporate overlords are involved have unfettered access, but they’re unlikely to analyze that data from a public safety perspective. Unhinged players are addicted to their products and no interest in making anything public that could cut into their profits.