Iranian actors have also spent recent months creating fake news sites and impersonating activists, laying the groundwork to stoke division and potentially sway American voters this fall, especially in swing states, the technology giant found.
The findings in Microsoft’s newest threat intelligence report show how Iran, which has been active in recent US campaign cycles, is evolving its tactics for the upcoming election that is likely to have global implications.
The report goes a step beyond anything US intelligence officials have disclosed, giving specific examples of Iranian groups and the actions they have taken so far. Iran’s United Nations mission denied it had plans to interfere or launch cyberattacks in the US presidential election.
The report doesn’t specify Iran’s intentions besides sowing chaos in the United States, though US officials have previously hinted that Iran particularly opposes former president Donald Trump.
US officials have also expressed alarm about Tehran’s efforts to seek retaliation for a 2020 strike ordered by Trump on an Iranian general. READ MORE