In October 18, 2024, like other social media channels, the “Harlan Report” seems to be a new media program. Its introduction on TikTok promises to make American media great again. It states: “No opinion, just facts.”
Similar to many oppositional media outlets, the videos released by the “Harlan Report” seem to aim at exposing government corruption and countering the left-leaning media environment.
When a video shared by the “Harlan Report” went viral online, receiving over 1.5 million views, this became even more evident. The video claimed that President Biden made suggestive remarks at the Washington NATO Summit.
However, something seemed off. The transcript used in the video was incorrect, and Biden never made any such comments.
Furthermore, there were other abnormal signs. Initially, the account manager of the “Harlan Report” claimed to be a U.S. military veteran who had lost confidence in Biden. Shortly after, they claimed to live in New York and be a 29-year-old Trump supporter. A few months later, they claimed to be a 31-year-old Republican social media influencer from Florida.
Later, the account handle was changed to “Harlan_RNC,” implying a possible official connection with the Republican Party. However, “Harlan” is neither a legitimate news source nor is the operator an American citizen.
According to a report released last month by the social network analysis company Graphika, the “Harlan Report” is one of thousands of accounts related to a global online influence operation known as “Spamouflage,” which is a Beijing-supported activity linked to Chinese law enforcement.
Unlike the “Harlan Report,” most of the “Spamouflage” activities do not focus on discrediting American conservatives but rather amplify existing criticisms of American society and government.
Some accounts produce content similar to the “Harlan Report,” but they are aimed at smearing Democrats. Others aim to anger and divide non-partisan individuals, further depriving them of their participation in the political process.
Some pose as American anti-war activists, sharing memes or images calling former President Trump a “fraud” and portraying him in an orange jumpsuit. Some question the legitimacy of Biden’s presidency.
The uniqueness of the “Harlan Report” lies in its success in attracting followers and serving a pioneering role in targeting a specific audience like advertisers.
Now, Washington’s national security leaders are concerned that China may gain experience from these efforts, continuing to create “Harlan-style” social media accounts, impersonating American citizens, and subtly manipulating the preferences of Americans.
The U.S. House Committee on China has recognized this risk and urged social media companies to pay more attention to this issue.
John Moolenaar, Chairman of the China Committee and Republican congressman from Michigan, told the “Epoch Times,” “China is using deceptive social media accounts to influence our upcoming election, and that is not surprising.”
“We encourage social media companies to expose China’s propaganda activities and take action against Chinese bots attempting to deceive Americans,” Moolenaar said.
Foreign attempts to influence U.S. elections are not new, but their actions are becoming more intense and receiving varying degrees of success.
In August of this year, a report by the cybersecurity company Recorded Future revealed that China, Iran, and Russia were conducting influence operations aimed at interfering in the 2024 election.
The report found that Chinese official actors, supported by the Communist regime, “amplified specific content, highlighted polarizing domestic issues,” in an attempt to create discord among Americans. These issues include “Black Lives Matter,” campus protests, and U.S. foreign policy towards Israel and Ukraine.
Additionally, Iran-backed actors targeted President Trump’s reelection campaign, attempting to infiltrate its core circle.
At the same time, Russian-supported influence operations spread false stories and images about Vice President Kamala Harris to tarnish the reputation of Democratic presidential candidates.
The report found that, including “Spamouflage,” Chinese influence operations, which have historically not resonated with American audiences, have now achieved sporadic breakthroughs through viral content.
These breakthroughs are largely due to the widespread use of artificial intelligence (AI) and deepfake technology. The masterminds behind “Spamouflage” exploited these technologies to cater to the preferences of the target audience.
John Mills, a former cybersecurity policy director at the Department of Defense, told the “Epoch Times” that China is using AI to categorize and interpret user data in order to further exploit users’ fears and desires.
“People don’t understand the tremendous power of big data and data analysis, nor do they understand the artificial intelligence that China [the CCP] has and is using on a large scale,” Mills said.
“They [the CCP] can create tailored data streams for individuals, knowing their preferences, dislikes, and trigger points,” he added.
In July, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) issued an unclassified memorandum on election security. It pointed out that the Chinese regime “is seeking to expand its collection and monitoring capabilities on U.S. social media platforms, possibly to better understand and ultimately manipulate public opinion.”
Mills stated that these data would help the CCP obtain positive and negative interaction information on social media users, allowing them to refine more targeted and covert influence operations.
These actions could then attempt to trigger widespread skepticism or hysteria about real or fictional events, which Mills referred to as “tailored mass psychosis.”
“This is the basis of psychological warfare: understanding the target audience and knowing their trigger points. This is why they [China] conduct Spamouflage operations on a stunning, huge scale, and create these false accounts,” Mills said.
Last year, Meta identified Spamouflage as the world’s largest online influence network. Meta stated that the Chinese regime created 4,800 fake social media accounts posing as Americans.
In most cases, these accounts do not immediately disseminate false content. Instead, they repost posts created by actual politicians and news outlets, both from liberal and conservative sides, to build a fan base and amplify content that could potentially divide Americans.
As followers increase, their personal profiles change, both in claimed identity and type of content shared.
Mills said that the technology used to identify and manipulate Americans is essentially a new version of the type analysis technology that tech giants use to understand consumer preferences.
“When I search for trailer hitches online, ads for trailer hitches follow me wherever I go,” Mills said. “Now, China [CCP] is adopting the approach of large tech companies, but on a larger scale, with more sinister purposes and no safeguards or safety measures.”
Thus far, the U.S. government has not provided a clear answer on the purpose of China’s large-scale influence operations. Furthermore, different government departments seem to have differing views on whether China aims for specific outcomes in the U.S. elections.
The Department of Homeland Security’s 2025 Homeland Threat Assessment Report, issued on October 2, predicts that foreign actors will use “disruptive strategies to sow discord, undermine confidence in U.S. domestic institutions more frequently.”
Recently, officials from the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) stated to the media that Russian online actors are trying to elect Trump and undermine Harris’s candidacy.
However, the latest Election Security Overview from ODNI suggests that China “may not intend to influence” the outcome of the U.S. election.
Nevertheless, Mills disagrees with this assessment, asserting that China is attempting to “influence the election” to ensure the election of a candidate less likely to obstruct the CCP’s pursuit of global dominance.
“What are China’s [CCP] intentions? Unlike the Russians who just want to generate hate and discontent… the CCP is intervening in the elections,” Mills said.
Last year, an ODNI report revealed that the CCP is now more willing than ever to interfere in U.S. elections because it doesn’t believe the Biden administration will take retaliatory action.
The report indicated that CCP officials have given more leeway to operatives to intervene in U.S. elections, believing that Beijing faces less scrutiny and that they expect the current government will not retaliate severely, a concern that arose in 2020.
Government agencies responsible for protecting Americans from such actions have not provided any official guidance on how Americans should identify and respond to this content.
In April of this year, Cait Conley, a senior adviser at the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), stated that the agency is prepared to help individuals resist foreign influence operations, especially during the 2024 election cycle.
At that time, Conley said in a statement, “The election process determines the fate of American democracy, which is why our foreign adversaries deliberately target our election infrastructure to conduct influence operations.”
“CISA is dedicated to ensuring these officials and the American public do not have to fight alone,” the statement said.
However, when asked how the American public should identify and combat foreign influence operations, CISA declined to comment, redirecting the question to ODNI.
ODNI did not respond to requests for comment from this publication.
The reporter contacted the State Department to inquire about actions taken by the department to counter foreign interference in U.S. elections. In response, a spokesperson for the State Department stated that the department “focuses on information environments abroad.”
The Epoch Times also reached out to the Department of Homeland Security for comment but did not receive a response.
The Graphika report did not provide any recommendations for identifying or countering the influence operations nor did it offer a comment.
Recorded Future also did not respond to requests for comment. However, in a report released in September, the company recommended dealing with deepfake news by entities concerned about reputation and encouraged collaboration with fact-checkers, social media platforms, and media institutions.
According to the Recorded Future report, the scope of foreign influence activities is growing, often aimed at misleading the public and interfering in electoral processes.
Similarly, based on research cited in the same report, most people are unable to identify deepfake content. Offering guidance in this regard could greatly benefit them.
In fact, according to a study published in the Journal of Cybersecurity Education, Research, and Practice, most people cannot identify deepfake videos of people they are unfamiliar with, with nearly 30% unable to discern deepfakes of those they know.
Moreover, even if a person can identify the authenticity of deepfake videos, they may still be influenced by them, especially when the videos promote extreme beliefs or actions.
A study published in the Computers in Human Behavior journal found that even when false information is retracted, it may still influence people’s political beliefs.
The report stated, “Even if individuals are aware that certain information may be untrue, this information can still influence their beliefs and actions.”
“In other words, even unreliable false information can affect political beliefs, some of which the recipients are unaware of,” the report added.
Therefore, the prevalent use of deepfakes in foreign influence operations may result in American voters harboring long-term antipathy or distrust towards a candidate, even if they realize the information is false.
When asked for advice for Americans, Mills said, “You should be highly skeptical of anything you see online.”
“There are no safeguards to what China [the CCP] is doing,” he said.