Taipei Times
Date: Nov 18, 2018
By: Chung Li-hua and Jonathan Chin  /  Staff reporter, with staff writer

The Chinese government is likely to hit Taiwan with Internet-based disinformation and step up the intensity of other interference and influence operations ahead of voting in the nine-in-one elections on Saturday, a national security official said yesterday.

Chinese cyberunits could flood social media with fake news in the week before the elections to sow conflict and harm political parties that Beijing disfavors, said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

Beijing’s has dedicated substantial resources to infiltrate society as part of its “united front” tactics, the official said.

The tactics include leverage of the Belt and Road Initiative, academics and think tank exchanges; cultivating pro-Chinese politicians and influential opinion makers; compartmentalizing the treatment of the pan-blue and pan-green camps; using activists to pressure the government; and propaganda and psychological warfare, the official said.    [FULL  STORY]