[10][11] The National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2019 further expanded GEC's scope of work, including endowing it with a mandate, as reflected in its current mission statement.

[13][14][15] In May 2023, director of national intelligence Avril Haines testified before the Senate Armed Services Committee that the FMIC would support GEC and other entities within the U.S. government to help them understand "the plans and intentions of the key actors in this space: China, Russia, Iran, etc.

[32][31] The New York Times wrote that the accusations "reflect worry in Washington that China’s information operations pose a growing security challenge to the United States and to democratic principles around the world by promoting 'digital authoritarianism.

[35] In April 2020, the inspector general for the State Department concluded that the GEC lacked safeguards to ensure that independent organizations it was working with were acting appropriately, such as when it funded a project called "Iran Disinfo" which aggressively targeted groups including the National Iranian American Council.

[35] In its analysis of GEC's response to the COVID-19 infodemic, The Cyber Defense Review noted that the agency had chosen to fund partner organizations rather than taking a direct role in fighting disinformation, and that it lacked a social media presence of its own.

[38] In addition, Perry expressed concern that Congress had directed the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) to create yet another agency, the Foreign Malign Influence Response Center (FMIRC), without specifying how it would collaborate and avoid duplication with GEC.

"[39][40][41][42] In May 2023, Republicans Michael McCaul, Brian Mast, Chris Smith, Darrell Issa, Maria Elvira Salazar, Keith Self, Cory Mills, and Ken Buck co-authored an oversight letter to U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, in which they alleged that GEC had strayed from its founding mission by facilitating censorship of conservative opinions in the U.S., among other things.