Topic

DFRLab Nonresident Fellow Konstantinos Komaitis speaking at an event.

Wed, Feb 28, 2024

First Statement of Konstantinos Komaitis to the United Nations on the Global Digital Compact

Delivered before the United Nations on the topic of the Global Digital Compact, addressing successes and lessons learned

by Konstantinos Komaitis

Digital Policy Government (Includes international governing bodies)
A man holds a Russian flag an orange and black "Z" symbol during the annual Immortal Regiment march in Moscow on Victory Day, May 9, 2022. The websites investigated in this report used the same version of the Z symbol in their online promotional materials. (Source: STR/NurPhoto via Reuters Connect)

Wed, Feb 21, 2024

Pro-Russia network spreads propaganda and disinfo in Latin America

Multi-platform operation amplifying Kremlin-aligned narratives published content in Portuguese and Spanish

by Beatriz Farrugia

Brazil Brazil

Thu, Feb 15, 2024

US celebrities unwittingly recruited to undermine Moldova’s president

Pro-Russian propagandists solicited US celebrities on Cameo to record videos calling for the downfall of Moldovan President Maia Sandu

by Victoria Olari

Deceptive Content Manipulation 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

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
KRAKOW, POLAND - OCTOBER 13: Voting at a polling station during the parliamentary elections on October 15, 2023 in Krakow. Poland. Parliamentary elections were held in Poland on October 15. The elections were accompanied by a highly controversial referendum during which four questions were asked, including about migration policy. (Source: Klaudia Radecka/NurPhoto via Reuters)

Wed, Dec 13, 2023

How foreign actors targeted Polish information environment ahead of parliamentary elections

Foreign - or seemingly foreign - actors implemented different interference actions in order to influence Polish voters or foment societal instability

by Givi Gigitashvili

Central Europe Central Europe
An Ezzedeen Al-Qassam Brigades (EQB) propaganda poster featured on Telegram. (Source: EQB)

Tue, Dec 12, 2023

How Palestinian militants use Telegram videos in the Mideast conflict

Palestinian militant factions appear to be operating with a high degree of technical coordination, producing uniformly branded propaganda videos with regularity.

by Dr. Michael Loadenthal

Conflict Extremism
USAID Administrator Samantha Power speaks to the media as she visits an aid center for refugees from Nagorno-Karabakh in the border village of Kornidzor, Armenia, September 26, 2023. REUTERS/Irakli Gedenidze

Thu, Dec 7, 2023

Russian and Azerbaijani pro-government outlets exploit Georgian USAID narratives

Outlets exploited Georgian government claims to push narratives blaming the US for organizing civil unrest in Georgia and running spies in Azerbaijan

by Eto Buziashvili

Armenia Azerbaijan
Social media icons logo displayed on a smartphone with European Commission Digital Service Act on screen seen in the background, in this photo illustration. On 19 October 2023, in Brussels, Belgium. Jonathan Raa / Nurphoto (Photo by Jonathan Raa/NurPhoto)

Wed, Dec 6, 2023

Learning more about platforms from the first Digital Services Act transparency disclosures

An analysis of platform reporting on content moderation teams' language skills

by Konstantinos Komaitis, Jacqueline Malaret, Rose Jackson

Content Moderation Policies Digital Policy
Screencap of a video posted to Facebook on September 18, 2023, showing troops participating in a military exercise in Moldova. (Source: Andrei Dobrovolschii)

Tue, Nov 28, 2023

Pro-Kremlin actors amplify video to target multinational military exercises in Moldova

A video featuring a local Moldovan farmer accosting military personnel participating in multinational exercise was used as a pretext to attack the West

by Victoria Olari, Eto Buziashvili

Eastern Europe Eastern Europe
Documents showing vote counts received at a polling station are seen in Warsaw, Poland on 19 October, 2023. (Source: Jaap Arriens/NurPhoto via Reuters)

Mon, Nov 20, 2023

Nontransparent network of pro-opposition Polish Facebook pages coordinates its attacks

Network pushed similar or identical pro-opposition and anti-ruling party content, often in a way by which their coordination, authenticity, and provenance was obscured

by Givi Gigitashvili

Central Europe Central Europe