The FBI is preparing for a wave of multilayered digital assaults and disinformation campaigns targeting the 2022 US midterm election process.
The perpetrators of these attacks are likely to be the state governments of China, Russia and Iran with the goal of sewing confusion and mistrust in the process.
Systematic influence operations “cause panic or lack of confidence in our election infrastructure,” FBI director Christopher Wray said during a cybersecurity conference at Fordham University in New York City on Tuesday.
To address this reality, the FBI is working closely with US Cyber Command to maintain an active stance against threats. Wray said that, when in “combat tempo” the two teams were in touch every two hours regardless of any new events.
This relationship creates a far more resilient elections security model but is facing a constantly evolving threat.
National Security Agency Director Gen. Paul Nakasone said that threat actors have shown a strong capacity for innovation and were constantly unveiling new weapons and new strategies.
“It went from just sort of sowing divisiveness and discord through social media, fake personas, that kind of thing, into a much more multidisciplinary type of threat,” Wray said.
