100 days of war: Information war peaked during Russia’s invasion of Ukraine
India Today
As the Russia-Ukraine war crosses 100 days, the information war is at its peak. Disinformation has evolved into an important tool for manipulating a specific audience's perception.
False narratives, manipulated photos, and fabricated videos have all become part of the Ukraine-Russia conflict. The war is not only on the ground but also on the internet. Disinformation is becoming a major tool for manipulating the perception of a targeted audience.
Social media platforms have been used as weapons to change the narrative of war. Russia’s disinformation and propaganda ecosystems propagated false narrative against Ukraine. Several cyberattacks on Ukrainian government infrastructure were carried out in order to weaken their defence. Ukraine also retaliated with official and unofficial cyber and information technology (IT) teams established by the government and private networks.
Social media and its widespread adoption have changed the nature and practice of human interaction for much of the world. The spread of intentionally false information on social media is often exacerbated by automated or "bot" accounts.
In the first week of March 2022, Twitter was flooded with a coordinated campaign promoting a pro-Putin and anti-Ukraine narrative using the hashtag #IStandWithPutin.
An investigative report published by the US-based Digital Forensic Lab (DFR Lab) said that the pro-Russian hashtag trended globally after being amplified by a suspected network of accounts, many of which were based in India.
