When Russia carried out covert operations against the Democrats in 2016, the US was overwhelmed. That is different in this election campaign. Western states can learn from this.
Donald Trump received support from Russian intelligence services in 2016. This time, the Iranians are also involved.
Mark Makela / Getty
Iran tried to stir up sentiment against vice presidential candidate J. D. Vance with an internal Republican document. When this action became known in August, it was no surprise. It was to be expected that countries like Iran, Russia and China would take actions to influence the presidential election in the USA. They had already done so in previous years.
But the reaction to the incident was remarkable. The media, the authorities and the IT security companies in the USA acted quickly and prudently. This is a big step forward compared to attempts to influence previous election campaigns. The country has learned its lesson.
Just a few years ago, the United States was completely overwhelmed by such covert operations. When Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump ran against each other in 2016, Russian intelligence services made internal documents and emails public in order to discredit the Democratic candidate. They had previously collected the information in cyber attacks.
There were indications of Russian authorship, but this fact was not discussed – despite the rapid assignment by the IT security company Crowdstrike – reported cautiously. The Republicans even completely denied Russian involvement. Moscow’s influence campaign had its effect.
The media played an important role. They reported uncritically on the contents of the stolen documents and thus allowed themselves to be instrumentalized by the Kremlin. Official statements from the American authorities, however, were not forthcoming for a long time. It was only after several months that the security services the «Hack and Leak» operation Russia too. Much too late.
USA sends strong signal to the Kremlin
The situation in the 2024 election campaign is quite different: When Iranian actors leaked an internal Republican document to various media outlets in the summer, there was great reluctance. «Politico» and «Washington Post» did not report on the content of the leaked document, but on the hacker attack by Iran. Just nine days later, the American intelligence services announced jointly and in clear terms that the regime in Tehran was behind the attack on the Republicans.
The American authorities sent a strong signal last week when they exposed several Russian influence activities. detailed description of the Russian approach and the financial flows used to pay right-wing influencers in the USA show that American investigators must have pursued this operation with great effort for months.
The authorities thereby demonstrated their vigilance. They signaled to their own population, but also to the Kremlin, that enemy activities can be identified and disrupted. Unlike in previous years, the USA is no longer allowing itself to be fooled.
Joint efforts are needed to combat disinformation
In order to counter foreign influence, a collaboration between different actors is needed. This seems to be working in the USA. The authorities are prepared and, above all, willing to inform the public quickly and clearly. At the same time, there is an exchange of information within the IT security industry in order to disrupt hostile activities.
It is important that the media today are sensitized to the phenomenon of foreign influence. They must accept their responsibility as a level-headed voice and, when publishing something, be at least aware of what the intention of an anonymous source might be. Ideally, the public is also aware of the danger.
The way the USA deals with foreign attempts to influence them gives us hope. The phenomenon will only increase. Other Western states that are in the sights of Russia, Iran or China can take their approach as an example. With joint efforts, enemy influence can be combated.
