Recent analysis

Programs

The Atlantic Council Technology Programs comprises five existing efforts—the Digital Forensic Research Lab (DFRLab), the GeoTech Center, the Cyber Statecraft Initiative, the Democracy + Tech Initiative, and the Capacity Building Initiative. These operations work together to address the geopolitical implications of technology and provide policymakers and global stakeholders necessary research, insights, and convenings to address challenges around global technology and ensure its responsible advancement.

Content

In the News

Nov 24, 2020

Hu quoted in Voice of America on Russian influence

By Atlantic Council

On November 24, Forward Defense non-resident senior fellow Evanna Hu was quoted in a Voice of America article titled “Russian Influence Peddlers Carving Out New Audiences on Fringes.”

Disinformation
Elections
AlertaVenezuela email banner

#AlertaVenezuela

Nov 24, 2020

#AlertaVenezuela: November 24, 2020

By Atlantic Council's DFRLab

On Twitter, pro-Trump and Venezuelan pro- Maduro accounts used U.S. President Donald Trump’s lawyers' attempts to prove supposed Venezuelan interference in the November 3 U.S. presidential election.

Disinformation
Venezuela

New Atlanticist

Nov 23, 2020

Why foreign election interference fizzled in 2020

By Scott Jasper

The lessons of 2016 seem to have been heeded by those looking to protect us from disinformation from abroad, but the real threat in 2020 came from misinformation within the United States.

Disinformation

UkraineAlert

Nov 22, 2020

How Ukraine’s Orange Revolution shaped twenty-first century geopolitics

By Peter Dickinson

Ukraine's 2004 Orange Revolution is often overlooked but it is worthy of more attention as one of the great geopolitical turning points of the early twenty-first century that set the stage for today's Cold War climate.

Conflict
Democratic Transitions
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#AlertaVenezuela

Nov 18, 2020

#AlertaVenezuela: November 18, 2020

By Atlantic Council's DFRLab

President Trump’s false claims that the election was “rigged” have been bolstered by his lawyers who misleadingly suggested that Venezuelan chavistas were behind the “fraud.”

Disinformation
Venezuela
Belarusian cellphones

Article

Nov 18, 2020

Belarusian activist Telegram channels are losing their audience

By Nika Aleksejeva

Belarusian Telegram users are increasingly seeking independent news sources and engaging with the regime’s official channels.

Belarus
Disinformation

Fast Thinking

Nov 17, 2020

FAST THINKING: Trump fires top DHS cybersecurity official over election protection

By Atlantic Council

Donald Trump escalated his attacks on the integrity of the US election process Tuesday night, firing a top Department of Homeland Security cybersecurity official who spent the last weeks debunking many of the president’s false claims about election fraud.

Cybersecurity
Disinformation

Future of DHS

Nov 12, 2020

Warrick mentioned in Politico article on election transition

By Atlantic Council

On November 12, Forward Defense Nonresident Senior Fellow Thomas Warrick was mentioned in a Politico article highlighting a letter signed by over 150 former national security officials warning the government of the serious national security risk posed by the delay in recognizing President-Elect Biden.

Democratic Transitions
Disinformation
AlertaVenezuela email banner

#AlertaVenezuela

Nov 11, 2020

#AlertaVenezuela: November 11, 2020

By Atlantic Council's DFRLab

After President Trump suggested, without evidence, voting fraud had occurred, Spanish-language Twitter amplified his narratives.

Disinformation
Venezuela
Hopewell Chin'ono

Interview

Nov 11, 2020

#DFRLabCoffeeBreak with Investigative Journalist Hopewell Chin’ono

Investigative journalist Hopewell Chin'ono sat down with the DFRLab to discuss media freedom in Zimbabwe.

Africa
Corruption

Experts