ElevenLabs AI voice generation used in Russian "Operation Undercut" disinformation campaign
Recorded Future reported that ElevenLabs' AI voice generation technology was used by a Russian organization in a disinformation campaign called \"Operation Undercut\" targeting European audiences with misleading videos designed to undermine support for Ukraine. The campaign used AI-generated voices in multiple European languages to make fake news content appear authentic, which was detected through analysis of the audio files.
What happened
Threat intelligence firm Recorded Future identified a Russian influence campaign dubbed "Operation Undercut" that used AI-generated voices to create misleading videos targeting European audiences. The campaign produced fake or misleading "news" videos with AI-generated voiceovers in multiple European languages (English, French, German, Polish, and Turkish) attacking Ukrainian politicians as corrupt and questioning the usefulness of military aid to Ukraine.
Recorded Future determined the videos "very likely" used ElevenLabs' commercial AI voice generation technology. Researchers verified the use by submitting audio clips to ElevenLabs' own AI Speech Classifier, which detected a match. The campaign used AI voices to make content appear more legitimate, in contrast to earlier videos in the campaign that featured human voiceovers with discernible Russian accents.
Reported impact
The campaign targeted European audiences with misleading content designed to undermine Europe's support for Ukraine. The videos attacked Ukrainian politicians and questioned the value of Western military assistance, with examples including claims that military hardware like American Abrams tanks were ineffective.
Index analysis
ElevenLabs' technology enabled rapid deployment of multilingual disinformation content, as the AI voices could speak multiple European languages supported by the platform without foreign accents that might signal inauthentic content. The use of synthetic voices allowed the campaign to scale content production across multiple languages more efficiently than producing separate human-voiced versions.
Governance controls
ElevenLabs did not respond to requests for comment regarding the use of its technology in the campaign. Recorded Future attributed the operation to the Social Design Agency, a Russia-based organization that the U.S. government had sanctioned in March 2024 for running a network of over 60 impersonated news websites across Europe and amplifying their content through fake social media accounts on behalf of the Russian Federation.
Classification
Sources and evidence
This record was researched and written by the Index, based on the following original reporting.