A Russian network publishes disinformation about the Ukraine war on around 60 fake websites. Disguised as a German news site, the fake news is being spread on social media. Facebook parent company Meta is now counteracting this and blocking numerous accounts.
The Facebook parent company Meta has dismantled a Russian network that, among other things, spread disinformation about the Ukraine war by falsifying German news portals. The online group explained that the disinformation campaign launched in May was aimed primarily at Germany, but also at France, Italy, Great Britain and Ukraine. It was “the largest and most complex mission originating from Russia that we have cut in Ukraine since the beginning of the war.”
According to Meta, the focus of the campaign was around 60 websites that imitated the online presence of well-known media such as “Spiegel” and “Bild” or the British “Guardian”. The Russian network published articles criticizing Ukraine, speaking negatively about Ukrainian refugees, promoting Russia and warning that Western sanctions against Russia would ultimately hurt the West. These articles were then shared on online platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, Youtube, Telegram and Twitter, as well as on petition platforms. Meta manager David Agranovich spoke of an “unusual mixture of sophistication and brute force” in the disinformation campaign.
Meta began its investigation after “t-online” and ZDF reported on the fake websites at the end of August. Meta says it blocked 1,633 accounts, 703 pages and one group on Facebook, and 29 accounts on Instagram.
Meta also made public a network from China intended to influence the US congressional election in November. Posts on particularly controversial topics, including abortions and gun rights, were published on fake accounts on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
The network was “small”, said Meta manager Ben Nimmo. However, it is the first uncovered Chinese network that focused on US politics before the congressional election. It is therefore unclear whether the Chinese government was behind the campaign. According to Meta, it clearly came from China.
