AI Voice Tech Likely Exploited in Russian Influence Campaign
A new report reveals that a Russian-linked influence operation uses AI-generated voiceovers from ElevenLabs to produce fake news videos targeting European support for Ukraine.
A threat intelligence report reveals that commercial AI voice generation technology very likely plays a key role in a Russian-linked influence campaign targeting Europe. The operation, dubbed "Operation Undercut," distributes fake news videos designed to erode European support for Ukraine by attacking Ukrainian politicians and questioning the effectiveness of military aid.
Researchers at Recorded Future find strong evidence that the campaign uses AI-generated voiceovers, specifically naming the startup ElevenLabs as a likely tool. By running the audio through ElevenLabs' own AI Speech Classifier, the researchers confirm a match, proving the technology makes the misleading content appear much more legitimate to unsuspecting viewers.
The usefulness of AI voice generation becomes obvious when comparing the campaign's outputs, as some clumsily released videos feature real human narrators with discernible Russian accents. In contrast, the AI-generated voiceovers sound completely native in multiple European languages, allowing the orchestrators to rapidly scale their disinformation across English, French, German, Polish, and Turkish audiences.