Russian cyberwarfare groups could take advantage of Twitter’s changes to its verification system to further spread misinformation online, national security experts warn, Politico reports.
Twitter CEO Elon Musk recently announced plans to change the social media network’s verification system to be a part of its $7.99 per month premium subscription service. National security experts like Glenn Gerstell, former general counsel of the National Security Agency and Central Security Service who now works as a senior adviser at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, said in an interview that Russia could look to take advantage of this system.
“I’m sure that the Kremlin, Vladimir Putin and Yevgeny Prigozhin are delighted to know that for just $7.99 a month, you can sow discord and set Americans against each other,” he said, noting that Russian oligarchs recently admitted to interfering in U.S. elections.
According to Gerstell, “From their point of view, that sounds like, 'Wow, what a great deal. Where do we sign up?’”
Gerstell said, “Disinformation corrodes our institutions and democracy and pits citizens against each other, and that’s far more pernicious than, say, the risk of North Korean missiles landing in San Francisco. Not that we don’t need to worry about that too, but the likelihood of the threat causing harm from disinformation is way higher.”
Chris Krebs, the former director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, said at an event on Monday: “Remember what I’ve been saying all along, about ‘look to your state and election officials, look to those trusted, authoritative sources for information.’”
He added, “If you upend that model at a time when authoritative information is absolutely critical, I think there’s a significant amount of risk."
Theodore Bunker ✉
Theodore Bunker, a Newsmax writer, has more than a decade covering news, media, and politics.
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