This fortnightly report by Control Risks highlights key incidents during the reporting period. We examine how these incidents play into the election interference trends we’re observing and their impact on Brazilian organisations and individuals.
Election interference and disinformation incidents
- Brazil, 24 September 2024 During the electoral debate in São Paulo, candidate Pablo Marçal claimed that if he were elected, he would arrest his opponent.
Implications for elections: This may cause an increase in disinformation about the candidates, which could sway voters.
- Russia, 13 September 2024 Russian President Vladimir Putin and Wang Yi, a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and director of the Office of the Central Commission for Foreign Affairs, met in St. Petersburg to discuss the “Six-Point Consensus”, a peace plan for the Russia-Ukraine conflict.
Implications for elections: Brazil and China have jointly issued the “Six-Point Consensus” and Brazilian officials expressed their alignment with China’s views on the issue, indicating a growing partnership between the two countries. Ukraine and its western partners have criticied Brazil’s support for the peace plan, which could lead to disinformation and western influence on Brazil to limit ties with China.
- Brazil, 18 September 2024 the Superior Electoral Court (TSE) prohibited online betting on Brazil’s elections this year, making it an electoral offense. This extends to offers that would provide financial or material advantages to voters.
Implications for elections: this decision will likely lead to illegal gambling and an increasingly negative sentiment towards the TSE and Brazil’s superior courts from the gambling community. Gambling companies may start to support politicians who align with their business interests.
- US, 26 September 2024 US President Joe Biden gave his farewell speech at the UN, which focused on China, including Brazil and China’s “Six-Point Consensus”.
Implications for elections: Biden emphasized his support of Ukraine, which includes continued security and humanitarian aid and a more united NATO. Given the US is one of Brazil’s largest trading partners, President Lula will likely feel increased pressure to limit co-operation with China. Politicians running for office in the upcoming election will feel increased pressure from both China and the US to influence relationships with their adversaries.
Social engineering awareness
- A new malware campaign is using the Rocinante remote access Trojan (RAT) to target Brazilian mobile devices. The malware is disguised as various banking apps or website login pages, indended to facilitate the theft of personally identifiable information (PII) from its victims.
- A vulnerability in Braza Bank’s systems was discovered in July 2024. The researchers identified a publicly exposed environment configuration file (.env) which contains sensitive information that could be used in follow-up attacks against Braza Bank or to gain unauthorized access to other sensitive data.
Social media monitoring
- There is an increasingly negative sentiment on the upcoming election in Brazil. Several users claim that the previous Brazil election was compromised.
- X has agreed to pay fines as well as comply with a Brazilian court order and selected a representative in Brazil.
- It is likely that when X is reinstated in Brazil, there will be an increase in disinformation surrounding the upcoming election.
Electoral protection in Brazil: cybersecurity training and support
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