Organization - Actor

Russian State Duma member Sergey Leonov speaks at a press conference in Moscow, March 22, 2022. (Source: DumaTV)

Wed, Mar 23, 2022

Russian War Report: Russian Duma members falsely claim Ukraine is creating ethnicity-targeting bioweapons

Members of the Russian Duma accused Ukraine and the US of creating bioweapons and researching "regional infections aimed at Russian regions."

by Digital Forensic Research Lab

(Source: Iria Puyosa/DFRLab via Gephi)

Wed, Mar 23, 2022

Understanding Telegram’s ecosystem of far-right channels in the US

DFRLab analysis of nearly 6,000 Telegram channels identified distinct “communities” ranging from MAGA supporters to QAnon

by Esteban Ponce de León

Extremism Gephi
Instagram logo displayed on a phone screen and Russian flag displayed on a screen in the background are seen in this illustration photo taken in Krakow, Poland on March 14, 2022 (Photo illustration by Jakub Porzycki/NurPhoto)NO USE FRANCE

Mon, Mar 21, 2022

Russian War Report: Meta officially declared “extremist organization” in Russia

Russia labeled Meta an "extremist organization," VKontakte got hacked, railways were sabotaged, and the Kremlin put on a concert to support the "military operation."

by Digital Forensic Research Lab

Mon, Mar 21, 2022

Sudanese protester run over by anti-riot police near local police station

Eyewitness footage shows unmarked transport vehicle carrying police running over protester north of Khartoum.

by Tessa Knight and Lujain Alsedeg

Africa Civil Society
Servicemen of the military forces of South Ossetia attend an oath of allegiance ceremony in Tskhinvali, the capital of the breakaway region of South Ossetia, Georgia, July 5, 2015.

Fri, Mar 18, 2022

Russian War Report: Russia sends military contractors from Georgian breakaway region to Ukraine

Military contractors from South Ossetia, Belarus' hesitancy to send troops, VPN's, the dilemma US tech companies face over Russian citizens' access, and more.

by Digital Forensic Research Lab

A network graph showing user-to-user interactions in posts sharing links to mundo.sputniknews.com.

Thu, Mar 17, 2022

RT and Sputnik in Spanish boosted by Russian embassy tweets and suspicious accounts

RT en Español and Sputnik News catapulted by diplomatic Twitter accounts and inauthentic activity after Russia invaded Ukraine.

by Esteban Ponce de León

Disinformation Electorate
A deepfake of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy that aired on a hacked Ukrainian 24 newscast.

Wed, Mar 16, 2022

Russian War Report: Hacked news program and deepfake video spread false Zelenskyy claims

A deep fake of President Zelenskyy, Russia threatens to block YouTube, and an information fog surrounding the Russian TV journalist who conducted on-air protest.

by Digital Forensic Research Lab

A satellite image shows ground forces equipment and a convoy, in Khilchikha, Belarus February 28, 2022. Satellite image 2022 Maxar Technologies/Handout via REUTERS

Mon, Mar 14, 2022

Russian War Report: Russian false-flag operation seeks to drag Belarus into Ukraine war

Ukrainian media reported that Russia attacked a Belarusian village from Ukrainian airspace in an attempt to make it appear that Ukraine had attacked Belarus and provoke Belarusian President Lukashenka to move troops into Ukraine. 

by Digital Forensic Research Lab

Fri, Mar 11, 2022

Russian War Report: Putin endorses plan to bring 16,000 “volunteers” from the Middle East to fight in Ukraine

Russia’s Defense Minister announced that more than 16,000 “volunteers” from the Middle East had expressed interest in joining Russia’s “liberation movement” for the People’s Republics of Donetsk and Luhansk.

by Digital Forensic Research Lab

A young Russian man who has a Netflix subscription shows his cell phone with an ad: “We suspend work in their region.” According to the statement, the service can still be used until the end of the billing period. After that, the user account will be deleted, there will be more debits, the information says.

Fri, Mar 11, 2022

Russia’s domestic internet talk isn’t new – but it’s ramping up

The size and scope of the ongoing crackdown is unprecedented.

by Justin Sherman

Eurasia Government
A network map of tweets containing the phrase #istandwithputin or istandwithputin between February 23, 2022 and March 4, 2022.

Thu, Mar 10, 2022

IStandWithPutin hashtag trends amid dubious amplification efforts

Over the week of February 28, 2022, the hashtag #IStandWithPutin trended in several regions, but a deeper look at the origin and amplification of the hashtag suggested this support was artificial.

by Jean le Roux

Africa Botnets
The War on Fakes Telegram channel (left) uses common fact-checking tropes, such as stamping images with the word “FAKE” in large red letters (right) to convey a sense of legitimacy.

Mon, Mar 7, 2022

Russian Telegram channel embraces fact-checking tropes to spread disinformation

The War on Fakes Telegram channel pushes false and misleading content in defense of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

by Ingrid Dickinson

Business Conflict