Intelligence community expecting intensified foreign influence efforts ahead of election

The National Intelligence Council released a security update warning Americans about foreign election interference on Tuesday.

“Foreign actors — particularly Russia, Iran, and China — remain intent on fanning divisive narratives to divide Americans and undermine Americans’ confidence in the U.S. democratic system consistent with what they perceive to be in their interests, even as their tactics continue to evolve,” the release read.

The agency expects foreign influence efforts to intensify in the days leading up to the November election with targeted posts on social media that employ AI-generated or enhanced messages.

However, the council said foreign actors would not be able to manipulate election processes to impact the outcome of the presidential election without detection.

“The IC (intelligence community) furthermore expects foreign actors to continue to conduct influence operations through inauguration denigrating U.S. democracy, including by calling into question the results of the election, as discussed in the declassified IC assessment on this topic,” the agency wrote.

The council wrote that these foreign actors likely see that the lack of confidence in U.S. elections "weakens the legitimacy of our democracy and consequently makes the United States less capable of effectively pursuing policies that are counter to their interests.”

A recent poll from Marquette University Law School shows that a third of Americans say they are not confident about the accuracy of the upcoming election.

Russia was highlighted as a nation seeking to amplify false information throughout the election while Iran and China are being monitored for post-election content that could be geared toward creating doubt around election results ultimately inciting violence.