US intelligence agencies on Friday confirmed that a video clip circulating on social media, in which a man presenting himself as a Haitian immigrant claimed to have voted illegally in the southern US state of Georgia, was the product of a Russian disinformation campaign.
In the clip, the man claims to have cast his ballot multiple times in early voting ahead of next Tuesday's US presidential and legislative election, using several Georgia ID cards.
On Thursday evening, the head of elections in Georgia, Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, said in a statement that the video, which surfaced on Wednesday, was probably a production of Russian troll farms.
Fake video manufactured by Russian influence actors, US spy agencies say
This suspicion was confirmed in a joint statement on Friday by the US intelligence community (IC) - the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) and Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA).
"The IC assesses that Russian influence actors manufactured a recent video that falsely depicted individuals claiming to be from Haiti and voting illegally in multiple counties in Georgia,” the three agencies said in the joint statement.
“This judgment is based on information available to the IC and prior activities of other Russian influence actors, including videos and other disinformation activities,” they added.
Previous Russian disinformation efforts
Friday’s disclosure follows the ODNI’s public attribution of three other fake videos in recent weeks to Russia, according to the USA Today newspaper.
Two contained false accusations against the Democratic presidential candidate, current Vice President Kamala Harris, and her running mate, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz. The third purported to show pro-Harris voters illegally ripping up Trump mail-in ballots in the battleground state of Pennsylvania, USA Today quoted an ODNI official as saying.
According to the intelligence agencies, these activities are “part of Moscow’s broader effort to raise unfounded questions about the integrity of the U.S. election and stoke divisions among Americans.
US agencies brace for more disinformation
“In the lead up to election day and in the weeks and months after, the IC expects Russia to create and release additional media content that seeks to undermine trust in the integrity of the election and divide Americans.”
After Wednesday’s video went viral on social networks, Secretary of State Raffensperger asked Elon Musk and the management of other social media platforms to remove it.
However, up to Friday, the 20-second clip could still be viewed on X, the social network of the billionaire, who since July has championed former president Donald Trump, the Republican hopeful, against Vice-President Harris.
