The U.S. Director of National Intelligence said "foreign actors" are conducting and planning "influence operations" targeting the November elections using increasingly refined tactics "to better hide their hand."
"Foreign actors are turning to commercial firms, such as marketing and public relations companies, to leverage these firms' expertise in communications, technical sophistication, and to complicate attribution," said the Election Security Update for late July issued by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) on July 29.
The report notes that such companies "are often able to operate more nimbly and with fewer bureaucratic hurdles than government entities."
The U.S. intelligence community expects Russia, China, and Iran to continue to attempt to influence U.S. politics and policies to "benefit their interests and undermine U.S. democracy and Washington's standing in the world."
"Moscow is leveraging Russia-based influence-for-hire firms to shape public opinion in the United States, including with election-related operations," the report says.
"These firms have created influence platforms, directly and discreetly engaged Americans, and used improved tools to tailor content for U.S. audiences, while hiding Russia's hand."
U.S. intelligence considers Russia the "predominant threat to U.S. elections," and believes Moscow "is working to better hide its hand."
SEE ALSO: What Would U.S. Foreign Policy Look Like Under A Kamala Harris Presidency?The ODNI report says China "probably does not plan to influence" the presidential election, though it may seek to "denigrate down-ballot candidates it sees as threatening its core interests."
Iran, the report says, will attempt "to fuel distrust in U.S. political institutions and increase social discord." Tehran has also "notably been active in exacerbating tensions over the Israel-Gaza conflict."
On July 30, Iran's ambassador to the UN, Amir Saeid Iravani, rejected the report, saying Tehran did not intend to sway the upcoming U.S. presidential election.
"Iran does not intend to and is not working on swaying the U.S. elections. Most of these accusations are psychological operations [aimed at] creating the impression of a busy election campaign," the official IRNA news agency quoted him as saying.
U.S. voters will cast their ballots on November 5. Former President Donald Trump is the Republican Party candidate, while current Vice President Kamala Harris is the presumptive candidate for the Democratic Party.
In addition, all 435 seats in the House of Representatives and 34 of the 100 seats in the Senate are being contested.