US Feds Dismantle Alleged Russian 'Bot Farm'

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Facts

  • The US Justice Department (DOJ) alleged Tuesday that the Kremlin funded nearly 1K artificial intelligence (AI)-generated X accounts, known as 'bot' accounts, pretending to be Americans to spread pro-Russian stories.1
  • The DOJ said the alleged network was organized by an unnamed editor at the Russian news outlet RT, which was banned in the EU following Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine. Tech platforms TikTok, Meta, and Google have also limited its online reach.2
  • One example of the alleged scheme was an account pretending to be an American from Minneapolis, Minn., which posted videos in support of Russia against Ukraine. The accounts included fake names, political beliefs, and locations.3
  • The DOJ worked with authorities in the Netherlands and Canada to conduct its investigation. The alleged bot farm also took part in influence campaigns targeting Poland, Germany, and Israel, among others, authorities say.4
  • X has since suspended the accounts, with which it's unknown how many users engaged, for violating its terms of service. The DOJ also seized two domain names used to make the emails that set up the accounts.2
  • This came the same day unnamed senior US intelligence officials alleged that Russia is using social media to boost former US Pres. Donald Trump in his 2024 presidential election campaign.5

Sources: 1BBC News, 2NPR Online News, 3Forbes, 4New York Times and 5NBC.

Narratives

  • Pro-establishment narrative, as provided by NBC. The Kremlin used social media to sow discord in the US in 2016, to help Trump, and during the 2022 midterm elections, so it's no surprise that it's meddling yet again. Whether it's the Ukraine war or immigration, Russian disinformation bots capitalize on domestic political tension to sow further discord among Americans and break down its democracy. A Russian victory over Ukraine depends on America's support for Kyiv, which is why these cyber attacks must end now.
  • Establishment-critical narrative, as provided by Public. The US government is again blaming Russia for election interference when it's US intelligence agencies doing so. Since before the 2020 election, Twitter, under its previous leadership, as well as other platforms like Facebook, worked hand-in-hand with the CIA and NSA to silence Trump supporters and anyone else critical of the establishment. Americans should not trust a word out of the mouths of Big Tech, the government, or the so-called anti-disinformation industry.

Predictions