Europe & Eurasia

Using drone footage supplied by the Ukrainian Defense Ministry, the DFRLab confirmed the incident took place near the Russian town of Belohorivka. (Source: @DefenceU/archive)

Fri, May 13, 2022

Russian War Report: Drone footage confirms failed Russian military pontoon crossing 

The DFRLab geolocated drone footage that showed the obliteration of the Russian unit that tried to cross the Siversky Donets in the Donbas region.

by Digital Forensic Research Lab

Top pro-Kremlin channels gain followers faster, reach more people, and have more subscribers than those critical of the Kremlin

Fri, May 13, 2022

Pro-Kremlin Telegram channels in Russia outperforming channels critical of Kremlin

Top pro-Kremlin channels gain followers faster, reach more people, and have more subscribers than those critical of the Kremlin.

by Givi Gigitashvili

Eastern Europe Electorate
Bonnie and Clyde’s cameo during Russian Victory Day celebrations. (Source: @JuliaDavisNews/archive)

Tue, May 10, 2022

Russian War Report: Russia accidentally honors Bonnie and Clyde during Victory Day celebration

During a Victory Day celebration, Kremlin TV featured a photo of infamous American criminals Bonnie and Clyde during a slideshow of alleged Soviet WWII veterans.

by Digital Forensic Research Lab

Tue, May 10, 2022

Videos in Spanish created by Kremlin outlets reappear on YouTube despite restrictions

Multiple channels used same branding of restricted pro-Kremlin media, garnering thousands of subscribers and views in less than a month.

by Daniel Suárez Pérez, Esteban Ponce de León

Buzzsumo Disinformation
A Belarusian soldier of the 11th separate mechanized brigade participates in a previous combat exercise on Feb 16, 2022. (Source: EYEPRESS via Reuters Connect)

Fri, May 6, 2022

Russian War Report: Belarus launches “combat preparedness test”

The Belarusian military began unannounced combat drills, the Kremlin drops the term "denazification," and a Latin American RT influencer resigns.

by Digital Forensic Research Lab

This image depicting a Polish general alluding to annexing parts of Ukraine was one of several circulating on pro-Kremlin Telegram channels that turned out to be fake. (Source: Signal Telegram Channel/archive)

Fri, May 6, 2022

Pro-Kremlin Telegram channels promote narrative that Poland will annex western Ukraine

Narrative relies on forged documents and fake images of billboards in Poland.

by Roman Osadchuk, Givi Gigitashvili

Disinformation Electorate
Logo of Russia’s Channel One program “AntiFake,” which presents propaganda and disinformation as fact-checking.

Wed, May 4, 2022

How Russia employs fake fact-checking in its disinformation arsenal

Kremlin-aligned outlets embrace open-source research and fact-checking tropes to make disinformation more convincing.

by Ingrid Dickinson

CrowdTangle Disinformation
File photo of Russian firefighter. (Source: EMERCOM)

Tue, May 3, 2022

Russian War Report: New fires and alleged sabotage operations across Russian territory 

Over the past week, numerous strategic facilities on Russian territory have caught fire drawing accusation of sabotage. 

by Digital Forensic Research Lab

Russian gamer Ivan “Pure” Moskalenko draws a Z (top left corner) during an idle moment of a Dota 2 game against a team with two Ukrainian players.

Tue, May 3, 2022

Russian gamer banned after drawing the letter Z during esports competition

Russian team Virtus.pro was competing against Ukrainian players during Dota 2 tournament at the time of the incident.

by Emerson T. Brooking

Europe & Eurasia Influential Individual
Plumes of smoke rise after a fire erupts at an oil depot in Bryansk, Russia April 25, 2022 in this still image obtained from social media video. Natalya Krutova via REUTERS

Tue, Apr 26, 2022

Russian War Report: Geolocating fires in Bryansk

On April 25, large fires were reported in Bryansk, Russia, just 100 kilometers from the Ukrainian border. DFRLab geolocated the fires to confirm an armed forces fuel depot was damaged.

by Digital Forensic Research Lab

Pro-Russia telegram channel circulated what it claimed was proof that Ukraine planned to sell weapons to African countries. (Source: Rezident)

Fri, Apr 22, 2022

Russian War Report: Forged document claims Ukraine is selling surplus weapons to African countries

A Kremlin-tied Telegram channel published a forged document claiming that Ukraine was selling surplus weapons to African countries.

by Digital Forensic Research Lab

In this photo illustration the Google Maps logo seen displayed on a smartphone and in the background. (Photo by Rafael Henrique / SOPA Images/Sipa USA)No Use Germany.

Wed, Apr 20, 2022

Russian War Report: Google refutes misleading claims about blurring Russian military assets

Thousands of posts online claim Google Maps unblurred satellite images of Russian military installations. Meanwhile, Russia hesitates to ban YouTube and a troll campaign distracts from Bucha.

by Digital Forensic Research Lab