In the midst of the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine, Facebook and Twitter have taken down a fake claim made against Ukraine. These accounts were spreading fake news and propaganda about Russia’s war in Ukraine, according to Facebook. One of the deleted accounts was linked to a Russian hacker group, while the other was linked to a Belarusian hacker group.
People from Russian-dominated regions of Russia, the Donbass, and Crimea, according to Facebook’s parent company Meta, posted false information about the Russian invasion of Ukraine, despite the page having only about 4,000 followers. A large number of fake profiles were also involved in disseminating inaccurate information.
These people posed as news editors, former aviation engineers, and a scientific publication, according to a meta investigation. They used artificial intelligence-generated headshots as profile pictures. Simultaneously, a Belarusian hacking group hacked several accounts and used them to spread anti-Ukrainian and pro-Russian propaganda.
Hackers also used phishing attacks in Ukraine to target journalists, military personnel, and local government officials, sharing edited videos from the hacked accounts depicting Ukrainian soldiers as vulnerable and surrendering to Russia. The hacker has been identified as a ghostwriter who allegedly works for the Belarusian government, according to Facebook.
An account posing as an independent news organisation claimed that Ukrainian soldiers welcomed Russian troops with open arms, according to Twitter. According to these accounts, the Ukrainian military is also using civilians as human shields and is using prohibited weapons of war. All of these accounts were connected to a website called Ukraine Today. These accounts have now been removed from the system.
Due to policy violations and spam, Twitter said dozens of accounts were permanently suspended and several accounts were blocked on February 27. Twitter stated that its investigation is ongoing and that it will take additional actions in the future.