U.S. Midterm Elections Series: Impacts Of Political Involvement On Organizations

Product Serial: B-2022-10-03a

TLP:CLEAR

In this brief, ZeroFox Intelligence explores how political involvement and perceived company values may affect organizations.

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Scope Note

ZeroFox Intelligence is derived from a variety of sources, including—but not limited to—curated open-source accesses, vetted social media, proprietary data sources, and direct access to threat actors and groups through covert communication channels. Information relied upon to complete any report cannot always be independently verified. As such, ZeroFox applies rigorous analytic standards and tradecraft in accordance with best practices and includes caveat language and source citations to clearly identify the veracity of our Intelligence reporting and substantiate our assessments and recommendations. All sources used in this particular Intelligence product were identified prior to 12:00 PM (EDT) on September 22, 2022; per cyber hygiene best practices, caution is advised when clicking on any third-party links.

Executive Summary

In an increasingly divided political climate, an organization’s perceived values can have a major impact on how they are regarded. The past several years have brought many divisive issues to the surface, including the coronavirus pandemic, voting reform, policing, income inequality, and other social justice issues. All of these issues have existed for years, but many have been increasingly moved to the forefront of society, particularly during election cycles. With information regarding campaign contributions from organizations - and leadership social media postings - readily available online, groups and individuals can easily research where organizations give their funding and where they stand on social issues. When those stances or donations do not align with expectations or desires of a segment of society, it can be the basis for physical, cyber, or reputational attacks.