OpenAI blocks accounts linked to Russian and Iranian influence operations — The Hill
In the United States, on October 8, OpenAI reported blocking several accounts linked to two influence operations that the company associates with Iran and Russia. As The Hill reports, the participants in the operations used OpenAI models together with traditional technologies to promote political messages through fake media outlets and analytical entities.
Fake journalists from Iran
According to OpenAI, the Iranian operation called Bogus Bylines created seven personas of purported journalists. They were used to pitch major articles to small and medium-sized online outlets in various countries. The operators concealed their location using VPNs and posed as U.S. independent writers, although transparency settings identified the accounts as being located in Iran.
These accounts were used to create false materials about a war between the United States and the Islamic Republic of Iran. Comments on geopolitical topics were also published on social media in English and Persian.
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Russian operation Dark Clark
The Russian operation, which OpenAI called Dark Clark after a fictional character, had the largest reach among similar schemes the company has reported since it began detecting and disrupting them. According to OpenAI, its participants created fake purported document leaks and audio recording scripts, including materials aimed at undermining recruitment into the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
OpenAI also stated that this operation fueled social tensions between Ukraine and Poland. Its participants prepared materials on behalf of the fake think tank Social Research Center. According to the company's assessment, the operators may have recruited people in Latin America who were unaware of the entity's true nature, and they also misled regional institutions.
In both cases, artificial intelligence was also used to prepare internal reports. OpenAI noted that the operators used questionable or outright deceptive methods to exaggerate the effectiveness of their activities.
