Justice Department Dismantles Russian Propaganda Network on Social Media, Seizes Two Internet Domains

Minneapolis, Minnesota United States of America
Justice Department dismantled a Russian propaganda network on social media.
Russian operatives intended to expand their reach using AI software tools known as Meliorator.
The bot farm consisted of nearly 1,000 accounts used to spread disinformation.
The operation targeted countries including Ukraine, Poland, Germany, the Netherlands, Spain and Israel.
Justice Department Dismantles Russian Propaganda Network on Social Media, Seizes Two Internet Domains

In a significant development, the Justice Department announced on July 9, 2024, that it had dismantled a Russian propaganda network operating on social media platform X. The bot farm consisted of nearly 1,000 accounts and was used to spread disinformation in the US and abroad. The Russian operatives behind this campaign intended to expand their reach to other social media platforms using AI software tools known as Meliorator.

The Justice Department identified several key facts about this operation. First, it revealed that the bot farm was led by a former RT deputy editor-in-chief and an FSB officer who created a private intelligence organization to advance Russian government objectives. The members of this organization had access to the bot farm and posted Russian-government narratives on various social media platforms.

Second, the operatives used U.S.-based domain names in violation of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act and federal money laundering laws. The Justice Department commended X for its cooperation in identifying and suspending a significant number of bot accounts before it took action.

Third, the disinformation campaign targeted various countries, including Ukraine, Poland, Germany, the Netherlands, Spain, and Israel. It included videos of Russian President Vladimir Putin justifying Russia's actions in Ukraine and other geopolitical narratives favorable to the Russian government.

The Justice Department seized two internet domain names associated with the email addresses used to create the bot accounts. The FBI, Cyber National Mission Force (CNMF), Canadian Centre for Cyber Security (CCCS), Netherlands General Intelligence and Security Service (AIVD), Netherlands Military Intelligence and Security Service (MIVD), and Netherlands Police all collaborated on this operation.

This disinformation campaign is a reminder of the ongoing threat posed by foreign actors seeking to influence public opinion in the US. The Justice Department will continue to take action against such efforts to protect American democracy.


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Confidence

90%

Doubts
  • Are there any other ongoing investigations related to this disinformation campaign?
  • How effective was the disinformation campaign in influencing public opinion?
  • Were all the bots identified and removed from the social media platform?

Sources

99%

The overall score is a weighted number that takes into account conflict of interest, bias, deception and other practices that undermine the credibility of the source. It is calculated as:
(Site Conflicts Of Interest + Author Conflicts Of Interest) / 2.0 * 0.2 + ArticleBiasScore * 0.20 + UniquePointsScore * 0.05 + DeceptionScore * 0.20 + ReadabilityScore * 0.05 + FallacyScore * 0.20

A score that takes into consideration the content for flow, interruptions with ads, and overt search engine optimization techniques that makes the content hard to understand

Justice Department Leads Efforts Among Federal, International, and Private Sector Partners to Disrupt Covert Russian Government-Operated Social Media Bot Farm

Department of Justice Tuesday, 09 July 2024 11:55
  • Unique Points
    • Individual A, a Russian national and former RT deputy editor-in-chief, led development of social media bot farm software.
    • “FSB Officer 1 created private intelligence organization to advance FSB and Russian government objectives using bot farm.”
    • “P.I.O.’s members had access to bot farm and posted Russian-government narratives on social media platforms.
    • “Actors used U.S.-based domain names, violating International Emergency Economic Powers Act and federal money laundering laws.”
    • “Justice Department commends private sector for coordinating with law enforcement efforts on disruption.”
  • Accuracy
    • Russian actors used fictitious social media profiles, often pretending to be Americans, to promote messages aligning with Russian government objectives.
    • Russian operatives had access to X accounts that purported to be interested in cryptocurrency.
    • The bot farm was used to spread disinformation in the US and abroad, including about Russia’s claims to Ukraine.
  • Deception (100%)
    None Found At Time Of Publication
  • Fallacies (100%)
    None Found At Time Of Publication
  • Bias (100%)
    None Found At Time Of Publication
  • Site Conflicts Of Interest (100%)
    None Found At Time Of Publication
  • Author Conflicts Of Interest (0%)
    None Found At Time Of Publication

98%

The overall score is a weighted number that takes into account conflict of interest, bias, deception and other practices that undermine the credibility of the source. It is calculated as:
(Site Conflicts Of Interest + Author Conflicts Of Interest) / 2.0 * 0.2 + ArticleBiasScore * 0.20 + UniquePointsScore * 0.05 + DeceptionScore * 0.20 + ReadabilityScore * 0.05 + FallacyScore * 0.20

A score that takes into consideration the content for flow, interruptions with ads, and overt search engine optimization techniques that makes the content hard to understand

Justice Department says it disrupted Russian ‘bot farm’ used to spread propaganda in US

CNN News Site: In-Depth Reporting and Analysis with Some Financial Conflicts and Sensational Language Sean Lyngaas Tuesday, 09 July 2024 17:47
  • Unique Points
    • Russian operatives bought domain names from an Arizona-based company to set up the bot farm and had access to X accounts that purported to be interested in cryptocurrency.
    • A fake account posted a video of Putin claiming that parts of Poland, Ukraine and Lithuania were a ‘gift’ from Russian forces.
    • An RT employee proposed creating a bot farm to distribute information on a wide-scale basis and signed off on the proposal with FSB officer involvement.
  • Accuracy
    • Russian operatives used fictitious social media profiles, often pretending to be Americans, to promote messages aligning with Russian government objectives.
    • Russian actors had access to X accounts that purported to be interested in cryptocurrency.
    • The bot farm was used to spread disinformation in the US and abroad, including about Russia’s claims to Ukraine.
  • Deception (100%)
    None Found At Time Of Publication
  • Fallacies (95%)
    The article contains several instances of inflammatory rhetoric and appeals to authority, but no formal or blatant logical fallacies are present. The author reports on the allegations made by the Justice Department without making any additional assertions beyond what was stated in the court documents.
    • ]The bot farm also targeted Poland, Germany, the Netherlands, Spain, Ukraine and Israel[.
  • Bias (100%)
    None Found At Time Of Publication
  • Site Conflicts Of Interest (100%)
    None Found At Time Of Publication
  • Author Conflicts Of Interest (100%)
    None Found At Time Of Publication

100%

The overall score is a weighted number that takes into account conflict of interest, bias, deception and other practices that undermine the credibility of the source. It is calculated as:
(Site Conflicts Of Interest + Author Conflicts Of Interest) / 2.0 * 0.2 + ArticleBiasScore * 0.20 + UniquePointsScore * 0.05 + DeceptionScore * 0.20 + ReadabilityScore * 0.05 + FallacyScore * 0.20

A score that takes into consideration the content for flow, interruptions with ads, and overt search engine optimization techniques that makes the content hard to understand

Russia operated nearly 1,000 sock puppet accounts on X, Justice Department says

NBC News Digital Tuesday, 09 July 2024 23:34
  • Unique Points
    • The Justice Department dismantled a Russian propaganda network with nearly 1,000 accounts on social media platform X.
    • The bot farm was used to spread disinformation in the US and abroad, including about Russia’s claims to Ukraine.
    • Attorney General Merrick Garland commended X for its cooperation in identifying and suspending a significant number of the bot accounts.
    • X identified and suspended a ‘significant number’ of the bot accounts before the Justice Department acted, and it has since voluntarily removed the rest.
    • The Russian operatives intended to expand to other social media platforms, using AI software tools known as Meliorator.
    • The network included affiliates of RT, a Russian state media organization that is banned in Europe and agreed to register as a foreign agent in the US in 2017.
  • Accuracy
    No Contradictions at Time Of Publication
  • Deception (100%)
    None Found At Time Of Publication
  • Fallacies (100%)
    None Found At Time Of Publication
  • Bias (100%)
    None Found At Time Of Publication
  • Site Conflicts Of Interest (100%)
    None Found At Time Of Publication
  • Author Conflicts Of Interest (0%)
    None Found At Time Of Publication

99%

The overall score is a weighted number that takes into account conflict of interest, bias, deception and other practices that undermine the credibility of the source. It is calculated as:
(Site Conflicts Of Interest + Author Conflicts Of Interest) / 2.0 * 0.2 + ArticleBiasScore * 0.20 + UniquePointsScore * 0.05 + DeceptionScore * 0.20 + ReadabilityScore * 0.05 + FallacyScore * 0.20

A score that takes into consideration the content for flow, interruptions with ads, and overt search engine optimization techniques that makes the content hard to understand

US disrupts Russian government-backed disinformation campaign that relied on AI technology

The Associated Press News Tuesday, 09 July 2024 17:08
  • Unique Points
    • Russian propaganda campaign backed by the Kremlin disrupted by US Justice Department
    • Technology for social media bot farm developed by senior editor at RT
    • Video posted showing Russian President Vladimir Putin justifying Russia’s actions in Ukraine was part of the disinformation campaign
  • Accuracy
    • Disinformation spread online through fictitious social media profiles
    • Two domain names seized and 968 accounts on X searched as part of disruption
  • Deception (100%)
    None Found At Time Of Publication
  • Fallacies (100%)
    None Found At Time Of Publication
  • Bias (100%)
    None Found At Time Of Publication
  • Site Conflicts Of Interest (100%)
    None Found At Time Of Publication
  • Author Conflicts Of Interest (0%)
    None Found At Time Of Publication