Category Archives: propaganda

Russia’s state-funded news outlet RT keeps hyping fringe stories on Clinton, collusion long after 2016

Posted on by

Russian state media’s approach to the next U.S. presidential election will look a lot like the plan for the last one, if a new analysis of articles from the network RT is any indication. RT is a Kremlin-funded television network with a strong digital presence that broadcasts in English, Russian and a range of other languages. The outlet’s biases have been well documented, with English-language TV broadcasts, YouTube videos and articles on the RT website covering news through an anti-establishment and anti-government lens. Researchers from threat intelligence company Recorded Future analyzed content from RT’s website from Jan. 2017 through July 2019 to find that the Russian news agency continues to revisit the same topics in an apparent attempt to divide public opinion in the United States. The analysis was shared exclusively with CyberScoop prior to its publication Thursday. Phrases including “Hillary Rodham Clinton,” “Russian Hackers,” and “COLLUSION” (in all capital […]

The post Russia’s state-funded news outlet RT keeps hyping fringe stories on Clinton, collusion long after 2016 appeared first on CyberScoop.

Continue reading Russia’s state-funded news outlet RT keeps hyping fringe stories on Clinton, collusion long after 2016→

Influence Operations Kill Chain

Posted on by

Influence operations are elusive to define. The Rand Corp.’s definition is as good as any: "the collection of tactical information about an adversary as well as the dissemination of propaganda in pursuit of a competitive advantage over an opponent." Basically, we know it when we see it, from bots controlled by the Russian Internet Research Agency to Saudi attempts to… Continue reading Influence Operations Kill Chain→

Fake News and Pandemics

Posted on by

When the next pandemic strikes, we’ll be fighting it on two fronts. The first is the one you immediately think about: understanding the disease, researching a cure and inoculating the population. The second is new, and one you might not have thought much about: fighting the deluge of rumors, misinformation and flat-out lies that will appear on the internet. The… Continue reading Fake News and Pandemics→

Fake News and Pandemics

Posted on by

When the next pandemic strikes, we’ll be fighting it on two fronts. The first is the one you immediately think about: understanding the disease, researching a cure and inoculating the population. The second is new, and one you might not have thought mu… Continue reading Fake News and Pandemics→

What Does Fake News Have to Do With Cybersecurity? A Lot

Posted on by

We’ve all heard of the fake news phenomena, especially over the last few years. As understood by the general public, fake news spreads false stories shared on social media that intend to sway someone’s opinion about something, usually with… Continue reading What Does Fake News Have to Do With Cybersecurity? A Lot→

Facebook removes accounts for masquerading as news outlets in the Middle East

Posted on by

Facebook has removed 2,632 pages, groups and accounts for engaging in “coordinated inauthentic behavior” including misrepresenting their origin and using fake accounts, the company said Tuesday. The information operations were connected to Iran, Russia, Macedonia and Kosovo, Facebook said. Researchers said the activity engaged in many of the same behaviors, typically magnifying state media propaganda, but cautioned they did not find any links between the operations. In recent months, Facebook has announced similar takedowns of accounts targeting users in Moldova and for spreading disinformation in the Middle East. “While we are making progress rooting out this abuse, as we’ve said before, it’s an ongoing challenge because the people responsible are determined and well-funded,” Nathaniel Gleicher, Facebook’s head of cybersecurity policy, said in a blog post. Facebook typically does not directly attribute such activity to governments or other specific groups, saying it does not have the capability to determine exactly who […]

The post Facebook removes accounts for masquerading as news outlets in the Middle East appeared first on CyberScoop.

Continue reading Facebook removes accounts for masquerading as news outlets in the Middle East→

How China used Western social media for a late-2018 charm offensive

Posted on by

More than 40,000 English-language social media posts that originated with six state-run Chinese media agencies reached millions of users on Instagram and other services over a span of four months concluding in January, according to research published Wednesday by the threat intelligence company Recorded Future. Xinhua, People’s Daily and others sought to subtly manipulate public opinion in the U.S. by promoting flattering images of Chinese culture, including tourist destinations and panda bears, rather than copying the hard-line rhetoric typically found in the Chinese-language versions of the same outlets, according to Recorded Future. Verified Instagram accounts run by both of those services posted roughly 26 times a day, reaching more than 5 million users between October 2018 and January. The effect is to overwhelm social media users in the West with positive images about China, potentially eroding their ability to think critically about a government that has been accused of committing […]

The post How China used Western social media for a late-2018 charm offensive appeared first on CyberScoop.

Continue reading How China used Western social media for a late-2018 charm offensive→

Atlantic Council holding worldwide events to combat the rise of disinformation

Posted on by

You don’t need to look far to find an example of where disinformation had a profound effect on international politics. Consider Ireland’s abortion referendum, where foreign anti-abortion organizations targeted Irish social media users with specific ads. Or, last month, when Facebook announced it detected Russian propagandists masquerading as a Georgian fashion site. Or, of course, the 2016 U.S. presidential election. Incidents like this are why the Atlantic Council is organizing a series of events and listening sessions next month in Brussels, Madrid and Athens where security experts can advise international lawmakers on how to stifle influence efforts. The goal is to help world leaders recognize and act more quickly to stop campaigns to magnify false narratives like ones used in debates over the Catalonia policy, Brexit, Ireland’s abortion referendum and the 2016 election. “Western Europe and European Union countries once thought this is just a problem affecting the U.S. and Balkan […]

The post Atlantic Council holding worldwide events to combat the rise of disinformation appeared first on CyberScoop.

Continue reading Atlantic Council holding worldwide events to combat the rise of disinformation→