The 2024 Summer Olympic Games are less than two months away from starting up in Paris. Ahead of the event, Microsoft is issuing a warning that Russian-based hackers and cybercriminals are stepping up campaigns to try to disrupt the global athletic event via misinformation on social media outlets.
In a blog post, the Microsoft Threat Analysis Center (MTAC) states that Russia-based groups labeled as Storm-1679 and Storm-1099 have launched misinformation campaigns on the 2024 Olympics, along with the country of France, its president Emmanuel Macron, and the International Olympic Committee (IOC).
Microsoft says these campaigns have two main objectives. One is to try to disparage the IOC. Microsoft said this started in June 2023 with a fake movie called Olympics Has Fallen. The Storm-1679 group is allegedly responsible for releasing this movie on Telegram. Microsoft says:
Using a fake AI-generated audio impersonating the actor Tom Cruise to imply his participation, the film disparaged the IOC leadership. The use of slick computer-generated special effects and a broad marketing campaign, including faked endorsements from Western media outlets and celebrities, indicates a significant increase in skill and effort compared to most Influence Operations (IO) campaigns.
The other objective of these groups is to create the impression that terrorists plan to attack the 2024 Paris Olympics. Microsoft stated these groups have released videos on social media using false claims that many people have returned their tickets for the Olympics due to terrorism fears. Fake press releases have also found their way online, falsely claiming the CIA has informed people not to attend the games because of terrorist attacks.
MTAC states these kinds of misinformation campaigns will likely increase in the weeks ahead of the Olympic Games, which officially begins on July 26. Microsoft says we can expect these Russian groups to use bots and automated social media accounts to spread false stories about the event. MTAC says it will continue to monitor these activities.
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