Bots responded to local crises (e.g. power outages, gas and medical shortages) to frame the occupiers as stable providers, in contrast to a “failing” Ukrainian state.
Read more on the OpenMinds website.
Our report with @DFRLab, “Digital Occupation: Pro-Russian Bot Networks Target Ukraine's Occupied Territories on Telegram,” is now public.
https://t.co/Xrakw2tTjm
On July 16, 10:00 AM ET, join us to hear insights from the research team.
Register via the link and take the opportunity to ask your questions directly: https://t.co/9LDZKSDnAE
One bot. One day. Almost 1,400 comments amplifying pro-Kremlin narratives.
Now multiply that by 3,600+ accounts, and you’ll begin to see just a glimpse of how large-scale Russian propaganda operates across Ukraine’s temporarily occupied territories.
The full report goes public next Wednesday, but if you want to get the findings first-hand, directly from the researchers behind the investigation, don’t miss our online event “Digital Occupation: Inside Russia’s Telegram Battle in Ukraine”.
Our CEO, @s_hnizdovskyi , will take part in an Oxford-style debate: “Should governments have the right to censor or control the Internet during cyber conflict?”
🚀 You’ll also find us at the CyCon Icebreaker – expo, showcasing the latest work of OpenMinds.
Let’s connect
#CyCon
💡Where do we draw the line between the national security and digital freedom?
That’s the question we’re bringing to the stage at CyCon 2025, an international @ccdcoe conference on cyber defense, taking place May 27–30 in Tallinn.
This is a meaningful recognition of the work we do and the path we've chosen — protecting societies from malign influence, challenging their freedom and future. We’re sincerely grateful not only for the funding, but also for the mentorship and product support provided by @Google.
After a short-lived decline in early 2025, the Kremlin has doubled down — escalating its rhetoric and shifting its focus from the U.S. to Europe. What we’re seeing is not a move toward lasting peace, but a strategic recalibration of the threat narrative.