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Romania's presidential election has been annulled following allegations of significant Russian interference, prompting a global outcry. The Constitutional Court cited evidence of a coordinated disinformation campaign involving over 25,000 fake pro-Georgescu accounts on TikTok, alongside more than 85,000 cyberattacks targeting election websites and IT systems. Leaked election-related credentials were also discovered on a Russian hacker forum, further solidifying suspicions of state-sponsored meddling. This unprecedented action underscores the increasing sophistication of foreign interference in democratic processes, leveraging social media platforms and advanced cyber capabilities to manipulate election outcomes.

The European Union has responded swiftly, issuing an urgent request to TikTok for information regarding Russia's role in the election turmoil. This follows a previous order for TikTok to preserve all election-related data. The US State Department also weighed in, stating that Romanians must have confidence in the fairness and integrity of their elections, free from foreign malign influence. The annulment of the election results and the subsequent investigation highlight the vulnerability of democratic systems to sophisticated cyberattacks and disinformation campaigns, prompting renewed focus on election security and the role of social media platforms in safeguarding democratic processes.

ImgSrc: blogger.googleu

References :

• securityaffairs.com: Article detailing the cyberattacks targeting Romania's election systems.
• The Hacker News: News about the annulment of the Romanian presidential election due to alleged Russian interference on TikTok.
• www.techmeme.com: The EU sends TikTok an urgent request for information on Russia's role in Romanian election turmoil, a day after ordering it to retain all election-related data (Kelvin Chan/Associated Press)

Classification:

• HashTags: #CyberSecurity #TikTok #InfoSec
• Company: Romanian Government
• Target: Romanian Presidential Election
• Attacker: Russian Hackers
• Product: TikTok
• Feature: Disinformation Campaign
• Type: Hack
• Severity: Major