The Security and Intelligence Threats to Elections (SITE) Task Force (TF) has detected an information operation targeting the 45th General Election by Chinese social media platform WeChat's most popular news account Youli-Youmian (有理儿有面), an anonymous blog that does not disclose its provenance.[i] Intelligence reporting links the Youli-Youmian account to the People's Republic of China (PRC) Chinese Communist Party's Central Political and Legal Affairs Commission (CPLAC).
The SITE TF assesses that this information operation was intended to influence Canadian-Chinese communities in Canada (i.e. speakers of a Chinese language, such as Mandarin, Cantonese, or Hakka) and looked to mould perceptions about the Prime Minister, Liberal Party of Canada (LPC) Leader and LPC candidate for Nepean, Mark Carney.
The Youli-Youmian account was also responsible for targeting members of Parliament Michael Chong (in June 2023) and Chrystia Freeland (in January 2025).
Content
The information operation targeting Mr. Carney is deliberately amplifying narratives in a coordinated and inauthentic way on WeChat, to Chinese audiences, including communities living in Canada. The SITE TF observed large spikes of what is believed to be coordinated inauthentic behaviour on March 10 and 25, 2025.
Specifically, various contrasting narratives were spread on WeChat about Mr. Carney - first amplifying the candidate's stance with the United States[ii], then targeting his experience and credentials.[iii]
Tactics, techniques and procedures (TTPs)
In February 2023, the China Digital Times reported that social media posts from the Youli-Youmian account are frequently assigned to employees at Chinese state-owned enterprises to amplify to wider audiences as part of their work duties.[iv] The SITE TF assesses that similar coordinated inauthentic activity was likely at play in the targeting of Mr. Carney on March 10 and 25.
The campaign received high levels of user engagement and views, with amplified articles about Mr. Carney receiving between 85,000 and 130,000 interactions, and an estimate of 1 to 3 million views. This level of engagement on WeChat is high when compared with popular state media outlets like the People's Daily that average only 30,000 interactions per post.
The articles posted on the Youli-Youmian account on March 25 were amplified in a coordinated and inauthentic way by a group of 30 smaller WeChat accounts that boosted the discoverability of the posts. This amplification occurred over the course of four days, keeping narratives about Mr. Carney in algorithmic feeds, albeit at much lower engagement and views.
Background
WeChat developer Tencent reports that the platform has over 1.3 billion monthly active users but has not disclosed how many of those users live overseas.[v] Marketing firms in Canada put the number of Canadian WeChat users at over 1 million.[vi] Despite this popularity, WeChat has remained not well understood by information integrity researchers. The PRC is likely aware of this oversight and may carry out these information operations on WeChat to avoid scrutiny.
Malign behaviour from the Youli-Youmian account was first identified by Rapid Response Mechanism Canada (RRM Canada) at Global Affairs Canada during federal by-elections taking place in June 2023.[vii] During that period, analysts noted that the popular WeChat account had targeted Mr. Michael Chong, CPC MP for the Wellington-Halton Hills riding at the time, with false narratives.
The Youli-Youmian entity was also responsible for targeting former LPC leadership candidate Chrystia Freeland in late January 2025.[viii]
Implications
The SITE TF assesses that the objective of the information operation is to influence Chinese communities in Canada in the context of the 45th General Election. The information being spread is inauthentic and coordinated, with the goal to manipulate.
[i] "What are the most-read blogs on China's WeChat?," Ginger River Review, February 01, 2023, https://www.gingerriver.com/p/what-are-the-most-read-blogs-on-chinas
[ii] "The US encounters a 'tough guy' Prime Minister," Youli-Youmian - FreeWeChat, March 10, 2025, https://freewechat.com/a/Mzg3MjEyMTYyNg==/2247656158/1.
[iii] "Canada's road to a 'seeking survival' election," Youli-Youmian - FreeWeChat, March 25, https://freewechat.com/a/Mzg3MjEyMTYyNg==/2247656809/1.
[iv] "Ministry of Truth - February 7 WeChat Moments Forwarding Task, China Digital Times, February 07, 2023, https://chinadigitaltimes.net/chinese/692732.html
[v] "WeChat revenue and usage statistics (2025)," Business of Apps, January 22, 2025, https://www.businessofapps.com/data/wechat-statistics/.
[vi] "Verdict: Harry Rosen builds its Chinese audience on WeChat," Media in Canada, February 20, 2020, https://mediaincanada.com/2020/02/20/verdict-harry-rosen-builds-its-chinese-audience-on-wechat/.
[vii] "WeChat account activity targeting Canadian parliamentarian suggests likely foreign state involvement," Rapid Response Mechanism Canada - Global Affairs Canada, August 09, 2023, https://www.international.gc.ca/transparency-transparence/rapid-response-mechanism-mecanisme-reponse-rapide/wechat.aspx?lang=eng.
[viii] "Is Trump taking on an ally to get at China?," Youli-Youmian - FreeWeChat, January 30, 2025, https://freewechat.com/a/Mzg3MjEyMTYyNg==/2247652899/1.
