The HaiEnergy Influence Campaign: Disinformation and Propaganda
The Rise of HaiEnergy
The HaiEnergy influence campaign, first detailed by Google Cloud’s Mandiant a year ago, has taken disinformation to new heights in its efforts to promote the political interests of the People’s Republic of China (PRC). Designing a sophisticated web of deception, HaiEnergy has puppeted multiple social media assets and created at least 72 “news” websites worldwide in 11 languages. Initially, these websites posed as independent news outlets but strategically pushed content aligned with the PRC’s political agenda. The campaign has also expanded beyond cyberspace, financing physical protests in Washington, D.C., and even displaying a billboard in Times Square, New York.
HaiEnergy’s Creative, Yet Ineffective Tactics
Despite its large and coordinated effort, HaiEnergy has proven remarkably ham-handed and ineffective. Ryan Serabian, a senior analyst at Mandiant, describes the campaign as creative rather than sophisticated. The perpetrators have demonstrated a lack of subtlety in pushing their agenda through unconventional means.
HaiEnergy’s Web of Deception
The core of HaiEnergy’s influence campaign lay in its arsenal of 72 news websites. These websites appeared independent but disseminated stories that criticized U.S. policies and its allies, supported the erosion of Hong Kong’s electoral system, and tarnished opponents of the Chinese Communist Party. To amplify their reach, HaiEnergy also employed inauthentic and paid social media accounts.
Expanding Beyond Cyberspace
However, HaiEnergy has moved beyond cyberspace in recent months. Mandiant researchers discovered that Shanghai Haixun, one of the organizations behind the campaign, hired freelancers on platforms like Fiverr to promote content consistent with its agenda. This included a video celebrating China’s “victory” over COVID-19. Furthermore, HaiEnergy financed two physical protests in Washington, D.C., highlighting US domestic issues such as racial discrimination and abortion. These protests were amplified through Haixun-operated newswire outlets, Times Newswire and World Newswire, and spread through inauthentic social media profiles.
A Curious Case in Times Square
In an intriguing twist, HaiEnergy published an article on Times Newswire claiming that a pro-PRC advertisement was displayed in Times Square. While there is no concrete evidence to confirm this, the researchers noted the possibility given Haixun’s self-promoted strategy of “LED digital marketing services” and an identified service that sells digital advertisements on the specific billboard featured in the article.
HaiEnergy’s Invisibility: The Double-Edged Sword
Despite its audacious tactics, the impact of HaiEnergy has not been extensive. While this ineffectiveness is good news, it also highlights a concerning aspect of the campaign: its invisibility. HaiEnergy’s operators have utilized their relative obscurity to experiment with new tactics and refine their methods.
The Trojan Horse of FinancialContent Inc.
One notable tactic employed by HaiEnergy involves a US-registered company called FinancialContent Inc. This company ostensibly provides stock and financial news data to various websites, making it appear legitimate. However, FinancialContent has also been ingesting news stories from Times Newswire and World Newswire, Haixun’s obscure newswire outlets, which have been leveraged by HaiEnergy. Consequently, Haixun’s propaganda stories have made their way onto the subdomains of 32 US publishers without their knowledge.
The Importance of Vigilance
Ryan Serabian warns that HaiEnergy’s experimentation with new tactics necessitates ongoing vigilance. It is crucial to expose and confront such disinformation campaigns, regardless of their sophistication or scale. When Mandiant brought the campaign to the attention of news outlets, they were often unaware that their websites had been compromised by HaiEnergy’s propaganda.
Internet Security and Countermeasures
The presence of HaiEnergy highlights the need for improved internet security measures. News outlets and legitimate publishers must remain vigilant in detecting and preventing such disinformation campaigns from infiltrating their platforms. Regular audits and security checks are essential to ensure the integrity of content shared with the public.
Philosophical and Ethical Considerations
The rise of influence campaigns like HaiEnergy raises philosophical and ethical questions about the nature of propaganda, manipulation, and the responsibility of the media. It underscores the importance of critical thinking and media literacy in society. Readers and consumers of news must be aware of the potential biases and hidden agendas behind the information they encounter. Additionally, news outlets should prioritize transparent sourcing and accountability to counter the deceptive tactics employed by campaigns like HaiEnergy.
Conclusion
The HaiEnergy influence campaign represents a new level of disinformation, with its use of independent websites, paid influencers, physical protests, and even Times Square billboards. While the campaign has proven ineffective thus far, its creative methods and experimentation highlight the need for ongoing vigilance against disinformation and propaganda. Internet security measures must be enhanced, and news outlets must actively combat these campaigns to ensure the integrity of the information they share. Ultimately, society must cultivate media literacy and critical thinking to mitigate the impact of such disinformation campaigns on public discourse and democracy.
<< photo by William White >>
The image is for illustrative purposes only and does not depict the actual situation.
