The threat persists: Russia's Doppelganger operation continues on X and Meta despite EU investigation

In the digital age, disinformation has become one of the most dangerous weapons of influence, and Russia has mastered this craft. A new report has revealed that despite a European Union investigation, a coordinated Russian disinformation campaign continues to operate on social media platforms such as X (formerly known as Twitter) and Meta. This operation, known as "Doppelgänger", uses sophisticated tactics to impersonate legitimate media outlets and spread misleading narratives in favor of Russia in many European countries.

What is the Russian operation "Double"?

Operation Russian Doppelganger is a well-coordinated disinformation campaign aimed at infiltrating and manipulating social media platforms. By creating fake accounts and pages on X and Meta, the operation spreads false information in various European languages, including English, German, French, Polish, Italian and Ukrainian. Its main goal is to sow discord, manipulate public opinion, and undermine trust in legitimate media sources.

For a more detailed introduction tos, check out the European Union's DisinfoLab, which monitors and combats disinformation across the continent.

Between June 4 and 28, 2024, the Counter-Disinformation Network (CDN), a coalition of 130 professional fact-checkers led by Alliance4Europe, identified more than 1,300 posts linked to the Russian Doppelganger campaign. These publications were mostly targeted at EU member states, promoting narratives that fit Russia's geopolitical interests.

Doppelganger campaign tactics

The Doppelganger campaign uses sophisticated methods to achieve its goals, such as:

Mimicking legitimate media: By mimicking the visual and textual styles of credible media sources, these fake accounts successfully mislead users into believing the information they share is authentic.

Localized content: An operation carefully tailors its disinformation to a specific audience by using local languages and addressing local issues, making it more likely to resonate with users.

Cross-Platform Distribution: Doppelganger posts appear on multiple platforms simultaneously, including X and Meta, expanding their reach and making them harder to track or remove.

Investigations and responses of the EU platform

Despite EU investigations, social media platforms are struggling to curb the impact of these disinformation operations. The report criticizes X and Meta for not taking strong measures to prevent the spread of fake content, especially in light of their previous promises to fight misinformation.

One of the main challenges is the constant development of disinformation tactics. As platforms become more vigilant in flagging and removing fake accounts, operations like Doppelganger are adapting, creating more sophisticated methods to avoid detection. As a result, users continue to be exposed to manipulated content that can shape public opinion in the interests of Russia.

Implications for Europe

The continuation of the "Double" operation poses a significant threat to the political and social stability of European countries. Disinformation campaigns like those carried out by Doppelganger are aimed at weakening the unity of the European Union, undermining trust in democratic institutions and fueling internal conflicts. As a result, the solution to this problem lies not only in protecting the integrity of social media platforms; it is about protecting the basic values of democracy.

In the long term, tougher regulations may be needed to force social media giants to act more quickly against such operations. In addition, public awareness campaigns to increase media literacy and help users recognize misinformation are important steps to reduce the impact of these misleading narratives.

Personal reflections

Operation Doppelganger highlights a broader problem: the vulnerability of open societies to disinformation. As a frequent user of social media, I'm often amazed at how easily misleading content can infiltrate my own feeds, even from seemingly reputable sources. This highlights the importance of verifying information and questioning the motives behind certain narratives.

In my view, this is not just an issue for governments and technology platforms; we as users have a responsibility to be more discerning. In this new era of information warfare, it is important to learn how to spot disinformation and understand the broader geopolitical context.