Open ai saying On Friday, Google announced it had thwarted an Iranian influence campaign that used ChatGPT to generate fake news and social media posts targeting Americans. The company said it identified and banned accounts that generated content for five websites (in English and Spanish) that posed as news outlets and spread “polarizing messages” on topics including the U.S. presidential campaign, LGBTQ+ rights and the war in Gaza.
The operation was identified as “Storm-2035,” part of a series of Microsoft influence campaigns. identified last week as “connected to the Iranian government.” In addition to news posts, it included “a dozen accounts on x and one on instagram” connected to the operation. OpenAI said the operation did not appear to have gained any significant traction. “The majority of social media posts we identified received few to no likes, shares, or comments,” the company wrote.
Furthermore, OpenAI stated that in the Brookings Institution Breakup Scalewhich ranks threats, the operation only registered a Category 2 rating (on a scale of one to six). That means it showed “activity across multiple platforms, but no evidence that real people picked up or widely shared its content.”
OpenAI described the operation as creating content for supposedly conservative and progressive media outlets, targeting opposing viewpoints. Bloomberg saying The content suggested Donald Trump was “being censored on social media and was prepared to declare himself king of the USA.” Another framed the selection of Tim Walz as Kamala Harris’ running mate as a “calculated choice for unity.”
OpenAI added that the operation also created content about Israel’s presence at the Olympics and (to a lesser extent) Venezuelan politics, the rights of Latin American communities, and Scottish independence. In addition, the campaign peppered the main material with commentary on fashion and beauty, “possibly to appear more authentic or in an attempt to build a fan base.”
“The operation attempted to play both sides, but didn't seem to get either side to participate,” said Ben Nimmo, a researcher in Intelligence and Investigations at OpenAI. Bloomberg.
The takedown of a hacking operation followed the revelation earlier this week that Iranian hackers had targeted the Harris and Trump campaigns. The FBI said Trump's informal adviser Roger Stone fell victim to phishing emails. Iranian hackers took control of his account and sent messages with phishing links to other people. The FBI found no evidence that anyone on Harris' campaign fell for the scam.
