APT41 Actors Believed to be Behind Influence Campaign Targeting American Voters

A new cyber influence campaign has emerged targeting voters in the Unites States, days before midterm elections. The operation, dubbed DRAGONBRIDGE, is believed to be operated by Chinese APT41 threat actors with the end goal of disrupting United States elections to benefit the People’s Republic of China. The threat actors are from a well-known Chinese cyberespionage threat organization (APT41) that has targeted entities throughout the global healthcare, telecommunications, and video game industries since 2012. Since 2019, several DRAGONBRIDGE campaigns were launched by APT41 threat actors targeting social media propaganda, disinformation campaigns against mining corporations, and the more recent American election influence campaign. DRAGONBRIDGE has been active for several months with the most recent activity involving distribution of a video on social media platforms discouraging American voters from voting in the upcoming midterms. The video goes on to criticize the legislative process and how it is not beneficial to American citizens, claiming American democracy is built on political infighting, partisanship, polarization, and division. CTIX will continue to monitor threat actor activity worldwide and provide additional updates accordingly.