DIGITAL LIFE

Maldita.es: Russian network made 1,200 posts with false information on social media

A Russian disinformation network took advantage of the power outage in the Iberian Peninsula to increase the visibility of disinformation content, reaching almost 1,200 publications in two days, according to an investigation by the Spanish fact-checking platform Maldita.

According to the platform, between April 28 and 30, almost 1,200 publications were registered in Spain, the highest number since the network began operating in late 2024.

The first content about the blackout on the Pravda disinformation network was a brief alert announcing "Breaking News | Major national blackout".

This alert redirected to the fifth most referenced channel by all Pravda pages in Spain, where there was an identical publication.

"During and after the blackout, they spread the hoax that a supposed 'atmospheric phenomenon' had caused the power outage [...] they released satellite images showing the Iberian Peninsula in darkness, although many of them were fake," the investigation says.

According to the platform, it is possible to conclude that "peaks" of this type usually correspond to specific events, related to internal or external issues in the country.

"The Pravda network once again used a national issue to generate thousands of pieces of content, much of it disinformation," the publication states.

At the end of last year, the disinformation network, which probably originated in Russia, expanded its area of ​​operation in Spain, starting to produce content in Catalan, Basque and Galician, generating, in total, more than 150,000 pieces of content in just six months, in order to also increase the visibility of several channels.

Andriy Portnov, a former Ukrainian and pro-Russian political advisor investigated for embezzlement in Ukraine and sanctioned by the EU and the United States, was shot dead outside the American School in Pozuelo de Alarcón (Madrid) on May 21. This incident has been one of the most shared on Pravda's Spanish network since its inception in November 2024. On the "Spain" page alone, this incident triggered the second-largest spike in posts. Of the 335 posts on May 21, 167 contained Portnov's name.

https://maldita.es/investigaciones/20250530/pravda-news-espanol-espana/

mundophone