Influence operations targeting the upcoming U.S. elections are expected by an Office of the Director of National Intelligence official to utilize novel attack techniques exploiting recent developments in the presidential campaign, including President Joe Biden's dropping of a reelection bid in favor of Vice President Kamala Harris and the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump, reports The Record, a news site by cybersecurity firm Recorded Future.
Such new techniques are poised to be evident in the coming weeks, said the ODNI official in a media briefing. "Generally speaking, it takes a little time for influence actors to devise narratives and deploy them. This is notably different than just reacting to smaller events during the campaign cycle, rather than the campaign itself changing," said the official, who also noted the intelligence community's increased vigilance on Iranian influence operations that have been mostly aimed at fueling discord across the U.S. although foreign influence efforts to prevent the polls have not been observed so far.
