European Influencers Being Used to Try to Swing Election

[Sean Mooney 2,051]

Saw this article today and it's an interesting read. Important to note- Trump's team seemingly has nothing to do with this (I'll highlight that line in the article as well)...but it does speak to the problems and issues that are arising, and will continue to fester, with AI and false information online:

 

Quote

 

Luna, a self-described 32-year-old “MAGA Trump supporter” from the battleground state of Wisconsin, has gained a huge following since she joined X, formerly Twitter, in March. Her timeline has become a digital bullhorn for the “Make America Great Again” movement, praising former President Donald Trump’s re-election bid, promoting conspiracy theories about his opponent, Vice President Kamala Harris, and touting Republican talking points to nearly 30,000 followers, who she addresses as “patriots.”

“Would You Support Trump Being The President forever? I wonder if you all support Trump for president just like me,” @Luna_2K24 posted on July 29, sharing a beach selfie in a white bikini and asking her followers to respond with an American flag emoji if they agreed. The post was viewed by around 54,000 people.

But Luna isn’t real. The photos of the smiling brunette posted periodically on @Luna_2K24’s timeline are of Debbie Nederlof, a German fashion influencer who lives across the Atlantic and won’t be voting in the US presidential election in November. When CNN reached out to the 32-year-old, a trained optician and single mother who is working two jobs – as a social media manager at an engineering firm and as a model to raise money for her child – she was angry and frustrated that her face was being used to push pro-Trump propaganda on X.

“To be honest, ‘what the f**k?’ was my reaction. That was my reaction, because I have nothing to do with the United States. With Trump, the political things over there. What the hell do I – from a small place in Germany – care about US politics?” she said.

Nederlof is one of 17 real European women — fashion and beauty influencers from the Netherlands, Denmark and as far away as Russia — whose online photos have been stolen by unknown actors to promote Trump and his pick as running mate, Senator JD Vance of Ohio, on X, a CNN investigation in collaboration with the Centre for Information Resilience (CIR) has found. CIR is an independent, non-profit social enterprise which describes itself as dedicated to exposing human rights abuses. It receives funding for individual projects from governments, NGOs and individuals.

The fake accounts are among 56 profiles on X identified by CNN and CIR, using a mixture of digital sleuthing and reverse image search tools, as appearing to be part of a coordinated campaign backing the Trump-Vance ticket ahead of the 2024 presidential election. There’s no indication that the Trump campaign is involved.

Experts say this could be just the tip of the iceberg. An analysis of the 56 pro-Trump accounts reveals a systematic pattern of inauthentic behavior. All of the accounts use photographs of beautiful, young women – many of them stolen, while others appear to be AI generated – who declare their support for Trump and use hashtags such as #MAGAPatriots, #MAGA2024 and #IFBAP (I Follow Back All Patriots). In many cases, CNN and CIR found the images had been manipulated to add Trump and MAGA slogans to otherwise unbranded clothing, all with captions that call to get out the vote.

The accounts also post similar messages, which often include English language errors (a potential sign of foreign interference, according to experts), and sometimes repost each other. Most have been created in the last few months and have seen their follower count grow rapidly; all give their location as being in the United States. Fifteen of the fake accounts have blue check marks – supposed to indicate that they have been verified – and eight of those have been identified as using stolen images.

CNN reached out to X regarding these accounts but did not receive a response. However, in the last 24 hours before publishing, X took down the majority of the accounts.

 

 

The rest of the article can be found here: https://www.cnn.com/2024/08/28/europe/fake-maga-accounts-x-european-influencers-intl-cmd/index.html

[RaiderHaters Revenge 4,559]

cool story, hopefully the FBI and CIA don't try to influence the election either

 

[weepaws 3,358]

Lol, everyone  will try to influence the election.  

[thegeneral 3,628]

1 hour ago, Sean Mooney said:

Saw this article today and it's an interesting read. Important to note- Trump's team seemingly has nothing to do with this (I'll highlight that line in the article as well)...but it does speak to the problems and issues that are arising, and will continue to fester, with AI and false information online:

 

 

The rest of the article can be found here: https://www.cnn.com/2024/08/28/europe/fake-maga-accounts-x-european-influencers-intl-cmd/index.html

Half these fake chicks are probably jerked off to by the MAGA lovers here

[Fnord 2,535]

2 minutes ago, thegeneral said:

Half these fake chicks are probably jerked off to by the MAGA lovers here

And used as examples of how attractive "republican" women are. While guys like @Maximum Overkill secretly fap to blue haired lesbians and transexuals on twitter.

[Strike 6,029]

Apparently Mooney isn't aware of how BOTH of our own major parties are trying to use influencers in this election.

[Sean Mooney 2,051]

10 minutes ago, Strike said:

Apparently Mooney isn't aware of how BOTH of our own major parties are trying to use influencers in this election.

You could post that story. I posted the one I read today. I didn't say "It's only one side doing this...."

Why do you people immediately have to play whatabout?

[HellToupee 2,253]

Hey we should try this with other countries…..

[Strike 6,029]

6 minutes ago, Sean Mooney said:

You could post that story. I posted the one I read today. I didn't say "It's only one side doing this...."

Why do you people immediately have to play whatabout?

I didn't say anything about one side.  Specifically, I said BOTH of our major parties are doing this.  And apparently you're ignorant of that fact.  Not surprised. 

[EternalShinyAndChrome 4,339]

1 hour ago, Strike said:

I didn't say anything about one side.  Specifically, I said BOTH of our major parties are doing this.  And apparently you're ignorant of that fact.  Not surprised. 

These guys LITERALLY believe their side is honest, moral and above all that.  Seriously.  They're that dogmatic and dense.

[Sean Mooney 2,051]

1 hour ago, Strike said:

I didn't say anything about one side.  Specifically, I said BOTH of our major parties are doing this.  And apparently you're ignorant of that fact.  Not surprised. 

I never said Democrats weren't doing things like this. You have an article that shows it that I can comment on I will gladly point that out as well.

I don't pick sides- I will call out both parties. 

[Hardcore troubadour 15,911]

20 minutes ago, EternalShinyAndChrome said:

These guys LITERALLY believe their side is honest, moral and above all that.  Seriously.  They're that dogmatic and dense.

Truly dense. 

[Hardcore troubadour 15,911]

3 minutes ago, Sean Mooney said:

I never said Democrats weren't doing things like this. You have an article that shows it that I can comment on I will gladly point that out as well.

I don't pick sides- I will call out both parties. 

Not when you’re off your meds. 

[Sean Mooney 2,051]

26 minutes ago, Hardcore troubadour said:

Not when you’re off your meds. 

Coming from the guy who freaks out when someone makes a comment to them that might be taken offensively that is ironic. 

[Reality 3,121]

Swng elections, lol...

We don't need to look to Europe, happening right here, bud.

Admitted & blatant election interference. 

 

[seafoam1 3,441]

4 hours ago, thegeneral said:

Half these fake chicks are probably jerked off to by the MAGA lovers here

Is that what the liberal fat ass chicks and dudes pretending to be chicks do to you? 

Nevermind, that's a given. 

[seafoam1 3,441]

1 hour ago, Sean Mooney said:

Coming from the guy who freaks out when someone makes a comment to them that might be taken offensively that is ironic. 

You really should get back on your meds. Masks are going to help you with your mental issues. Hell, they never helped anyone with anything. 

[jerryskids 7,092]

5 hours ago, Sean Mooney said:

Saw this article today and it's an interesting read. Important to note- Trump's team seemingly has nothing to do with this (I'll highlight that line in the article as well)...but it does speak to the problems and issues that are arising, and will continue to fester, with AI and false information online:

 

 

The rest of the article can be found here: https://www.cnn.com/2024/08/28/europe/fake-maga-accounts-x-european-influencers-intl-cmd/index.html

I appreciate the post and link.  So, who does stuff like this?  Is this like people who hack for the sake of hacking?  

Also on a random note, I've always wondered why such spam has obvious English language errors, as your article noted.  AI wouldn't have such errors.  Somebody trying to actually accomplish something wouldn't either.  It's like they intentionally include such errors.   

[Sean Mooney 2,051]

14 hours ago, jerryskids said:

I appreciate the post and link.  So, who does stuff like this?  Is this like people who hack for the sake of hacking?  

Also on a random note, I've always wondered why such spam has obvious English language errors, as your article noted.  AI wouldn't have such errors.  Somebody trying to actually accomplish something wouldn't either.  It's like they intentionally include such errors.   

Firstly- thank you for the civil response instead of turning it into partisan nonsense like some others did. 

Second- I don't think it is anyone in particular who is doing it. I think they are just people who see the ability to drive content and clicks for themselves and are basically engagement farming. In some cases too I think it is people just trying to steal information from people. Not necessarily for identity purposes but to just have the ability to essentially take over people's accounts and drive content towards them. The article also posits it could be state actors from different countries and I suppose that could be an issue as well. 

Lastly- yeah the grammar stuff is weird. It's as if the system is putting in these random breaks to beat tracking software or prevent something from being tagged as "AI." As a mild example- in some of the community groups on Facebook I'm a part of there are 4 times a day people putting up things that say "Hello community, times are tough and my business is in danger of closing. I do vent cleanings....40% discount...." but vents is almost always spelled wrong. Usually with a weird apostrophe somewhere in there. I think it helps them beat the guidelines and everything but it is clearly a scam of people making fake profiles of someone to put that through. And it becomes an issue because Facebook won't flag those things and then they perpetuate. 

I do think all the social media companies should be drug into Congress again and be interrogated over some of this because they have not figured out a way to beat it all yet and it doesn't seem like they are working on it as they are solely focused on user counts and perpetuating their agendas either intentionally or unintentionally. 

[Hardcore troubadour 15,911]

Tl/dr

[JuneJuly 212]

There are bot accounts on X !?!?!?!1111!  

You should stop reading CNN.  They spent time and money and only found 56 bot accounts on X and low IQ CNN readers just lap up the article.  

Quote

The fake accounts are among 56 profiles on X identified by CNN and CIR, using a mixture of digital sleuthing and reverse image search tools

Meanwhile Zuckerberg is writing letters to congress admitting Facebook influenced the last election.  

[Sean Mooney 2,051]

23 minutes ago, Hardcore troubadour said:

Tl/dr

No one was talking to you. Did your autism kick in again or did you feel you needed to draw attention to yourself there you whiny baby?

[Hardcore troubadour 15,911]