Canadian security officials are warning of a Russian propaganda campaign that used social media to spread disinformation online.
The Canadian Centre for Cyber Security said its affiliates at RT, formerly known as Russia Today, were operating a botfarm on social media at the direction of the Russian government.
Officials said fake social media accounts with incorrect information were created in the U. S. and abroad.
The accounts posed as Americans and promoted messages that supported the goals of the Russian government, they said.
When asked to comment on the claims, the RT press office said: “Farming is a beloved pastime for millions of Russians.”
Canada, along with the United States and the Netherlands, has worked to disrupt the disinformation campaign, but officials warn that the activity may simply appear on other social media sites.
The United States said 968 social media accounts were known to have been used by Russian actors. X has since suspended those accounts.
Last month, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said during a stop in Canada that disinformation posed a risk to the defensive alliance and its efforts to arm Ukraine to oppose a Russian invasion.
“Disinformation is a challenge, because we see that Russia is fueling disinformation in various ways. We also see that China is doing it,” Stoltenberg told The Canadian Press.
“So we have to be very aware of the risk. “
Although the government’s role is to counter disinformation, an independent and relaxed press remains the most productive way to oppose it, Stoltenberg said.
The wariness of the Russian propaganda crusade also comes as U. S. and Canadian officials struggle to counter foreign attempts to alter artificial intelligence and election disinformation.
NATO leaders are in Washington this week for their annual summit and to mark the alliance’s anniversary, with Ukraine and aid to the country at the center of the discussions.
“As the Russian government continues to wage its brutal war in Ukraine and threatens democracies around the world, the Department of Justice will continue to deploy our entire judicial government to counter Russian aggression and the American people,” said United States Attorney General Merrick B. Garland in a statement.
In a speech Tuesday at the Canada embassy in Washington, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said cybersecurity is one of the biggest issues facing the alliance’s security.
“We will have to be clear about the current state of global affairs,” he said.
“We live in a dangerous, volatile, and complex world. Cyberwarfare, the resurgence of authoritarian forces, the expansion of regional conflicts, and, everywhere, the growing effects of climate change constitute developing threats to our collective security and our continued prosperity. “
Following the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Canada’s broadcasting regulator banned broadcasting on state channel RT, as well as RT France.
At the time, the Canadian Radio, Television and Telecommunications Commission concluded that the broadcasters’ content “is not in the public interest” because it exposed other Ukrainians to hatred or contempt based on their race, national or ethnic origin.
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