Content

Wed, Feb 21, 2024

Arms sale claim heightened tensions ahead of 2023 Armenia-Azerbaijan peace talks

Online narratives claimed Iran or Russia might exploit French weapons that were allegedly bound for Armenia

by Ani Mejlumyan, Valentin Châtelet

Armenia Azerbaijan

Tue, Feb 20, 2024

French prime minister faces onslaught of online attacks

Investment scam promoted via Meta Ads, AI-fueled smear campaigns on X, and a Russian-led disinformation operation, and ignite a social media frenzy around Gabriel Attal

by Valentin Châtelet

Advertising Artificial Intelligence
UNRWA headquarters in Gaza City, September 19, 2018. (Source: REUTERS/Ibraheem Abu Mustafa)

Wed, Feb 14, 2024

Suspicious accounts on X amplify allegations against UNRWA

More than 130 X accounts exhibiting hallmarks of inauthentic coordination targeted US politicians with messaging critical of the UN agency in Gaza

by Dina Sadek, Digital Forensic Research Lab

Conflict Gaza
Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Kazakh counterpart Kassym-Jomart Tokayev sign bilateral documents in Astana, Kazakhstan November 9, 2023. (Source: Sputnik/Konstantin Zavrazhin/Pool via Reuters)

Thu, Feb 8, 2024

Russian milbloggers falsely accuse Kazakhstan of opening a NATO military facility

Russian military bloggers threatened the Central Asian nation after it opened a new conference hall at a training center for UN peacekeepers, falsely labeling it as a "NATO center"

by Eto Buziashvili

Asia Central Asia

Thu, Feb 8, 2024

Pro-Kremlin campaign promotes “anti-Maidan” movement in Georgia

Georgian far-right party Alt-Info conducted a cross-platform social media campaign claiming the West was fomenting a coup against the country

by Sopo Gelava

Conflict Disinformation
generative art rendering of a swarm of bees surrounding the face of an elephant

Wed, Jan 24, 2024

How Ukraine fights Russian disinformation: Beehive vs mammoth

Best practices in countering Russian disinformation, propaganda and information aggression, based on interviews with nearly two dozen Ukrainian practitioners

by Jakub Kalenský, Roman Osadchuk

Civil Society Digital Policy

Tue, Jan 23, 2024

Wagner communities continue to thrive on VK despite Russian government crackdown

VK pages temporarily removed "Wagner" from their names and used other tactics to avoid the Kremlin's wrath following the failed June 2023 mutiny

by Valentin Châtelet

Conflict Deceptive Content Manipulation

Mon, Jan 22, 2024

Gang violence and hostage-taking sow fear across Ecuadorian social media

Graphic content related to violent incidents in Ecuador has garnered millions of views on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter

by Esteban Ponce de León

Corruption Ecuador
Brazilian Justice Luis Roberto Barroso, September 28, 2023. (Source: Mateus Bonomi/AGIF via Reuters Connect)

Thu, Jan 11, 2024

Pro-Bolsonaro social media accounts target Brazilian Supreme Court justice

Accounts advocating for the impeachment of Chief Justice Luis Roberto Barroso sought to delegitimize the Brazilian judiciary system

by Beatriz Farrugia, Esteban Ponce de León

Americas Brazil
Hatice Cengiz, fiancee of murdered journalist Jamal Khashoggi, testifies before a House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee hearing on "The Dangers of Reporting on Human Rights" on Capitol Hill in Washington U.S., May 16, 2019. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque

Fri, Dec 22, 2023

Pro-Saudi X accounts repeatedly harassed activist and fiancée of murdered journalist Jamal Khashoggi

Turkish activist Hatice Cengiz, fiancée of murdered Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, targeted with death threats and insults on the platform formerly known as Twitter

by Digital Forensic Research Lab

Human Rights Online Harassment

Thu, Dec 21, 2023

DFRLab research highlights from 2023

From the war in Ukraine to the ongoing crisis in the Middle East, the DFRLab's international team of researchers investigated information operations and online harms around the world

by Andy Carvin, Layla Mashkoor

China Conflict
Screengrabs allegedly showing Mi-8MTPR downed in Voronezh.

Thu, Dec 21, 2023

Documenting equipment losses from the 2023 Wagner mutiny

The DFRLab revisits Yevgeny Prigozhin’s failed insurrection against the Russian military, six months ago this week

by Sayyara Mammadova, Valentin Châtelet

Geolocation Russia