China, Russia will ‘very likely’ use AI to target Canadian voters: Intelligence agency [Video]

Canada’s cyber intelligence agency is warning that countries including China, Russia and Iran will “very likely” lean on artificial intelligence to try and interfere in the upcoming federal election and mislead voters.

In a report assessing threats to Canada’s democratic process in the upcoming year, the Communications Security Establishment (CSE) said those known hostile actors are looking to use AI to fuel disinformation campaigns or launch hacking operations.

While the 28-page document suggests the threats are real and evolving, CSE does stress that it believes it’s “very unlikely” that AI-enabled activities will “fundamentally undermine the integrity of Canada’s next general election.”

It said these actors “are most likely to use generative Al as a means of creating and spreading disinformation, designed to sow division among Canadians and push narratives conducive to the interests of foreign states,” wrote the agency in its report, released Thursday morning. 

“Canadian politicians and political parties are at heightened risk …