Citizen Lab has uncovered a coordinated AI-enabled influence operation against the Iranian government, probably conducted by Israel. > Key Findings > > * A coordinated network of more than 50 inauthentic X profiles is conducting > an AI-enabled influence operation. The network, which we refer to as > “PRISONBREAK,” is spreading narratives inciting Iranian audiences to revolt > against the Islamic Republic of Iran. > * While the network was created in 2023, almost all of its activity was > conducted starting in January 2025, and continues to the present day. > * The profiles’ activity appears to have been synchronized, at least in part, > with the military campaign that the Israel Defense Forces conducted against > Iranian targets in June 2025. ...

This academic year, I am taking a sabbatical from the Kennedy School and Harvard University. (It’s not a real sabbatical—I’m just an adjunct—but it’s the same idea.) I will be spending the Fall 2025 and Spring 2026 semesters at the Munk School at the University of Toronto. I will be organizing a reading group on AI security in the fall. I will be teaching my cybersecurity policy class in the Spring. I will be working with Citizen Lab, the Law School, and the Schwartz Reisman Institute. And I will be enjoying all the multicultural offerings of Toronto...