Russian hackers have reportedly been part of several disinformation campaigns since the war against Ukraine began in the country. For these campaigns, Russia invested in bot farms based in Ukraine to target the country. Now, ukraine A massive bot farm that was linked to over 100 individuals has reportedly been busted. According to a report by Bleeping Computer cyber police department Did National Police of Ukrainehas successfully destroyed the bot farm after raiding around two dozen locations. The country has alleged that these bots were used to justify Moscow’s propaganda justifying Russia’s war in Ukraine. As per the report, these bots were not only used for sharing illegal content but also for stealing personal information as well as many other fraudulent activities.
The report states that units of Ukrainian National Police and cyber police carried out a joint operation in which they searched 21 locations in Vinnitsa, Zaporizhia and Lviv. In this joint operation, Ukrainian police seized computer equipment, mobile phones, more than 250 GSM gateways and approximately 150,000 Sim Cards from multiple mobile carriers.
What did the Ukrainian police say about the operation?
In a press release, the Cyber Police unit of Ukraine said: “Cyber Police established that the attackers used specialized equipment and software to register thousands of bot accounts in various social networks and subsequently launch advertisements that target Ukraine’s citizens.” norms and legislation. Also spreading hostile propaganda, using the accounts for unauthorized distribution of personal data of Ukrainian citizens on the Internet, in Internet fraud schemes, and threats to the security of citizens, destruction or damage to property was also done to send known false messages.”
Ukraine crackdown on Russian bots
Ukraine has taken down several Russian bot farms that have been spreading fake news since the start of the war. These bot farms operated from different parts of Ukraine and were used to demoralize Ukrainians. In addition, the purpose of these bots was to create panic among Ukrainians by providing false information about the Russian invasion.
The report states that units of Ukrainian National Police and cyber police carried out a joint operation in which they searched 21 locations in Vinnitsa, Zaporizhia and Lviv. In this joint operation, Ukrainian police seized computer equipment, mobile phones, more than 250 GSM gateways and approximately 150,000 Sim Cards from multiple mobile carriers.
What did the Ukrainian police say about the operation?
In a press release, the Cyber Police unit of Ukraine said: “Cyber Police established that the attackers used specialized equipment and software to register thousands of bot accounts in various social networks and subsequently launch advertisements that target Ukraine’s citizens.” norms and legislation. Also spreading hostile propaganda, using the accounts for unauthorized distribution of personal data of Ukrainian citizens on the Internet, in Internet fraud schemes, and threats to the security of citizens, destruction or damage to property was also done to send known false messages.”
Ukraine crackdown on Russian bots
Ukraine has taken down several Russian bot farms that have been spreading fake news since the start of the war. These bot farms operated from different parts of Ukraine and were used to demoralize Ukrainians. In addition, the purpose of these bots was to create panic among Ukrainians by providing false information about the Russian invasion.
In August 2022, Ukraine’s cyber police destroyed another major bot farm consisting of 1,000,000 bots. These bots were also used to spread Russian disinformation and fake news on social networks.
Later, in September 2022, Cyber Department of the Ukrainian Security Service ,ssu) unleashed another army of thousands of bots. These bots were also responsible for spreading Russian misinformation on several messaging platforms and social media networks.
Recently, the SSU also shut down five fake news networks that controlled over 100,000 fake social media accounts.