From Russia, with menace

(Commentary. Don't worry. Your tiny blog here is completely free of Russian influence, meddling.)

Reposted excerpt from a 2/16/18 NPR online article, which is linked below. Emphasis added:

"...American intelligence services are increasingly concerned about Russian accounts in social media. At a hearing the day before the shooting, Dan Coats, the Director of National Intelligence, warned that cyber warfare, including on social media, were one of his "greatest concerns".

"Frankly, the United States is under attack," Coats told the Senate Intelligence Committee. Adversaries "seek to sow division in the United States and weaken U.S. leadership."

The intelligence community's annual threat assessment, also out Tuesday, warns that Russia in particular will use social media "to try to exacerbate social and political fissures in the United States." The report predicts those attacks are likely to target the upcoming 2018 midterm elections.

Schafer says that the Russian accounts his organization tracks now follow a well-worn path. First, he says, they tweet out news and breaking developments. This helps them to gain attention and attract new followers. Then they begin tweeting highly inflammatory material to fan the flames of partisanship.

Finally, Schafer says, the accounts shift to conspiracy theories. "They build this narrative of, 'You are being lied to by the government, by the media, by everyone else, so don't trust anyone or anything,'" he says. "It's not just divisive, there's an erosion quality to it as well—of eroding trust...""

Link to full article. No affiliation: https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2018/02/16/586361956/as-an-american-tragedy-unfolds-russian-agents-sow-discord-online

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