Online influence versus Taipei

Chinese state outlets are repackaging criticism from Taiwan’s own opposition figures and influencers, then pushing it back onto the island’s social feeds. (reuters.com) Reuters reported on April 17 that the campaign used Douyin, then spread clips onto Facebook, TikTok, YouTube and other platforms popular in Taiwan. One 51-second Douyin video featured former Kuomintang lawmaker Cheng Li-wun accusing President Lai Ching-te of inviting Chinese aggression. (reuters.com) Five Taiwanese security officials and data shared with Reuters by the Taiwan Information Environment Research Center, or IORG, said Beijing is leaning on familiar Taiwanese accents and locally recognizable faces to make anti-government messages sound more credible. IORG describes itself as a Taiwanese civil-society research group founded in 2019. (reuters.com) (iorg.tw) Taiwan’s National Security Bureau has been warning for months that Beijing’s pressure campaign is not only military. On January 11, the bureau published an analysis of China’s “cognitive warfare” tactics against Taiwan in 2025. (nsb.gov.tw) That report said Taiwan recorded 45,590 fake online accounts in 2025, up from 28,216 in 2024. It also counted more than 2.314 million pieces of disinformation last year, up from 2.159 million in 2024. (taipeitimes.com) The bureau said the campaign aims at specific political targets, including President Lai, the Taiwanese military and trust in the United States. It said Chinese agencies and private firms collect data, track opinion leaders and tailor propaganda to different audiences. (taipeitimes.com) Reuters said the latest wave also overlaps with Taiwan’s defense debate. The Democratic Progressive Party is seeking about $40 billion in extra defense spending, and Taiwanese officials and IORG said some messaging argues that buying more U.S. weapons is pointless against China’s military power. (reuters.com) Taipei has answered publicly. Taiwan’s defense ministry told Reuters it is trying to counter the increase in Chinese “cognitive warfare” by improving media literacy and psychological resilience inside the armed forces, while the Presidential Office said cross-strait peace must be built on strength, not concessions. (reuters.com) Beijing did not offer a public reply in the Reuters report. China’s Taiwan Affairs Office and defense ministry did not respond to Reuters questions, and Facebook, TikTok and YouTube also did not respond to questions about the operation. (reuters.com) The result is a pressure campaign that runs alongside military drills, hacking and diplomacy. Taiwan’s National Security Bureau told parliament in 2025 that government networks were facing an average of 2.8 million intrusion attempts a day, as officials described cyberattacks and online influence as part of the same state-backed effort. (therecord.media)