Attorney General Curtis Hill on Friday called on Indiana’s congressional delegation and all Hoosiers to heed calls by Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats and others to guard against Russian interference in U.S. elections.
Hill
“We should all join in the effort to protect the integrity of our elections,” Hill said. “If we don’t have integrity in the electoral process, our republic is jeopardized.”
When using sites such as Facebook and Twitter, Hill said, all citizens should be aware of the constant efforts by Russia and others to spread misinformation via fake social media accounts. The goal, he said, often is simply to incite increased divisiveness among Americans of different backgrounds and political beliefs.
On Thursday, Director Coats said Russia continues to seek to wreak such havoc. He joined other national security officials in addressing the subject of Russian meddling at a session held in the White House briefing room.
“We continue to see a pervasive messaging campaign by Russia to try to weaken and divide the United States,” Director Coats said, as quoted by CNN. “The President has specifically directed us to make the matter of election meddling and securing our election process a top priority.”
Officials also worry that Russia and others could employ more sophisticated strategies than simply seeking to sow discord, such as hacking into computer systems vital to voting processes.