Iran-linked actors used ChatGPT to write fake news stories, social media comments, OpenAI finds – Axios

Vehicles driving past an Iranian flag in downtown Tehran in February. Photo: Morteza Nikoubazl/NurPhoto via Getty Images
OpenAI said Friday it deactivated a cluster of ChatGPT accounts this week that were using the AI chatbot to craft fake news articles and social media comments as part of an Iranian disinformation campaign.
Why it matters: Nation-state adversaries have already shown a vested interest in disrupting the 2024 U.S. elections — and experts fear AI tools like ChatGPT could speed up their ability to craft disinformation.
State of play: OpenAI identified, removed and banned an unspecified number of ChatGPT accounts this week that were using the tool to create content about the U.S. presidential elections and other topics.
Driving the news: Microsoft shared details about this exact Iranian disinformation group last week, including some of the fake news sites, in the same report that kicked-off the news about recent spear-phishing attacks targeting the U.S. presidential campaigns.
Zoom in: OpenAI identified a dozen accounts on X, formerly Twitter, and one Instagram account as part of its investigation.
Reality check: Most of the social media accounts sharing this AI-generated content didn't get much engagement, OpenAI found.
Between the lines: Nimmo said OpenAI used its own tools, including new ones developed since its last threat report in May, to detect these accounts after the Microsoft news last week.
What we're watching: There's still a long way to go until the November election and whether foreign influence operations will gain more steam online is an open question.
Go deeper: Iran is now the biggest foreign threat to the 2024 elections
Editor's note: This story was updated with a comment from Meta.
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