A pro-China influence campaign known as “HaiEnergy” is stepping up its disinformation tactics by infiltrating US news outlets, paying influencers, and employing other strategies to promote its agenda. The campaign, which was first exposed by Google Cloud’s Mandiant a year ago, has since expanded beyond cyberspace, financing physical protests in Washington, DC, and even displaying a billboard in Times Square.
According to Mandiant researchers, there are at least two organizations behind the HaiEnergy campaign. The first is Shanghai Haixun Technology Co., Ltd, a PR firm with a website that appears to be thin and filled with errors. The second is FinancialContent Inc., a company specializing in sneaking news stories onto legitimate publishers’ websites.
Initially, HaiEnergy relied on traditional methods of spreading propaganda online. It operated 72 news websites in 11 languages, which appeared to be independent but actually pushed content criticizing US policies, supporting the erosion of Hong Kong’s electoral system, and attacking opponents of the Chinese Communist Party. These stories were then amplified by a small number of fake social media accounts.
However, the campaign has evolved since its early stages. For instance, researchers discovered that Shanghai Haixun hired freelancers on Fiverr.com to promote content consistent with its influence campaign. This included a video praising China’s “victory” over COVID-19. Furthermore, HaiEnergy has moved beyond the virtual world by funding protests in Washington, DC. These protests focused on US domestic issues such as racial discrimination and abortion and were amplified by two Haixun-operated newswire outlets and inauthentic social media profiles.
In another instance, an article published on Times Newswire, one of Haixun’s outlets, claimed that a pro-China advertisement was displayed in Times Square in New York. While there is no evidence to confirm this, it is noteworthy due to Haixun’s self-promoted strategy of “LED digital marketing services” that specifically mention ad placement in Times Square.
Despite its efforts, HaiEnergy’s impact has been limited. The campaign has been described as “creative” but not sophisticated. This relative ineffectiveness has given the operators the opportunity to experiment with new tactics. For example, FinancialContent Inc., a US-registered company, appears to have established relationships with legitimate news outlets by providing stock and news data. As a result, Haixun’s news stories have managed to slip through and make it onto subdomains of 32 US publishers. This includes cases where Times Newswire stories were picked up by popular websites such as AZCentral.
The researchers emphasize the need to remain vigilant and expose these campaigns, regardless of their sophistication or size. When the HaiEnergy campaign was brought to the attention of news outlets, many were unaware that it was happening on their websites. It is crucial to continue identifying and exposing these activities to prevent the spread of disinformation.
In conclusion, the pro-China influence campaign known as HaiEnergy is employing various tactics to promote its agenda, including infiltrating US news outlets, funding physical protests, and utilizing fake social media accounts. While the campaign has not been highly effective thus far, its operators are continuously experimenting with new strategies. It is important to remain vigilant and expose these campaigns to prevent the dissemination of disinformation.