US intelligence agencies say “Russian influence actors” are behind a suspected fake video of a Haitian man who claims to have voted “multiple times” in Georgia.
The 20-second video, which has been viewed hundreds of thousands of times on X and other social networks, shows two men in a car claiming to be Haitian.
One says they obtained US citizenship within six months of arriving and have voted for Kamala Harris in Gwinnett and Fulton counties in Georgia. They encourage other Haitians to come to the United States.
The BBC has found clear indications, including false addresses and stock photos, which indicate the video is a fake.
In a statement, three US security agencies said that the video “falsely depicted individuals claiming to be from Haiti” and was made by “Russian influence actors”.
“This Russian activity is part of Moscow’s broader effort to raise unfounded questions about the integrity of the US election and stoke divisions among Americans,” said the joint statement from the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency.
Researchers at Clemson University said that the video bore the hallmarks of a Russian disinformation operation known as Storm-1516.
“This narrative is consistent with what we’ve seen from Storm-1516, especially in recent weeks since they’ve turned their focus squarely on the US election,” said Clemson’s Darren Linvill.
“We should absolutely not be surprised that they are focused on undermining the integrity of the US election.
“This is consistent with Russian strategy over the last two election cycles.”
