With less than two months to the 2024 presidential election, authorities are sounding the alarm about a surge in foreign influence operations aimed at swaying American voters.

Two Russian propagandists working for the state-backed media outlet RT were accused of money laundering, allegedly funneling nearly $10 million to a conservative media outlet. Additionally, 32 domains linked to a Russia-based network of fake news sites known as “Doppelganger” were seized by the Justice Department.

Meanwhile, Iran faces accusations from the Trump campaign of hacking staff email accounts and leaking sensitive information to US news outlets.

Two websites, “Coastal Chronicle” and “Progressive Pulse,” were recently exposed by Microsoft as having connections to Iranian state actors. Coastal Chronicle positioned itself as a news source for Charleston, South Carolina, a key region in a battleground state, while Progressive Pulse adopted the guise of a liberal-leaning platform, publishing content aimed at diminishing support for the former president.

Three other Iranian associated news websites were discovered, including one dubbed “Heartland Herald” which targets voters in Ohio, another crucial swing state in the upcoming November election.

The Office of the Director of National Intelligence’s Foreign Malign Influence Center notes that each foreign actor has distinct goals. Russia reportedly aims to support Trump over Vice President Kamala Harris, while Iran seeks to undermine the former president’s candidacy. China, while not actively promoting one candidate over another, is said to be interested in undermining overall US global support for democracy.”

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