• Research Associate, Moldova

Victoria Olari

Victoria Olari is a research associate for Moldova at the Atlantic Council’s Digital Forensic Research Lab (DFRLab), where she specializes in monitoring Moldova’s information environment and countering disinformation and foreign information manipulation.

Before joining the DFRLab, Olari served as a program coordinator at the Institute for Strategic Initiatives, where she designed and managed programs on conflict resolution and confidence building, with a focus on the Transnistrian region. She also contributed to fact-checking research through DisinfoLab projects addressing disinformation across Moldova’s regions. Olari previously served as a policy advisor in the Moldovan parliament, where she spent four years advising on key legislative initiatives and gaining deep insight into Moldova’s social and political dynamics.

Fluent in three languages, Olari is passionate about cultural exchange and enjoys traveling to connect with diverse communities.

August 2023

Russian War Report: Russian media pins Prigozhin crash on all except Putin

by Digital Forensic Research Lab

On Wednesday, August 23, Wagner Group PMC founder Yevgeny Prighozhin and many of his top brass were reported to be killed in a plane crash. Rumors swirled shortly thereafter as to the nature of the crash.
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August 2023

Russian War Report: Tensions escalate in the Black Sea as the Russian navy forcefully inspects a civilian cargo ship

by Digital Forensic Research Lab

Russia escalated tensions beyond Ukraine again this week when its navy forcibly inspected and fired warning shots at a civilian cargo ship.
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July 2023

Inauthentic Facebook campaign promoted pro-Russian Shor Party messaging in Moldova

by Victoria Olari, Iain Robertson

The campaign sponsored ads in support of convicted oligarch Ilan Shor and used fake accounts to target Moldova's pro-European government
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