Thread by @StZaryn

#Poland has been hit by a complex disinformation operation corresponding to the modus operandi of #Russia. Poland’s military policy and U.S.-Polish relations were targeted.

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STEP 1 - cyberattack on the War Studies University’s website

The hackers replaced one of the articles posted with the website with a false letter by the War Studies Univeristy’s Commander.
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The letter, targeted at U.S.-Polish relations, called on the Polish soldiers to fight against American occupation”. The content of the letter matched the main narratives Russian propaganda constantly pushes against Poland and the United States.
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STEP 2 – mailing

Emails were sent to different institutions, both national and intern. with a request to comment on the Commander’s letter. For this purpose, the hackers used email addresses, presumably hacked, of a former Polish MP and an US journalist.
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STEP 3 – distribution of false content

An English language website notorious for apmplfying the Russian disinformation posted a piece about the alleged letter by the War Studies University’s commander.
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Two other popoular outlets – lewyPL and prawyPL – had some of their archival articles replaced with a piece describing the letter. Another piece about the letter appeared on Podlasie24PL, a news website with a record of pushing disinformation, and in social media.
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This disinformation operation aimed to:
- create information chaos
- undermine the morale of Polish soldiers and the US troops deployed to Poland
- weaken the credibility of the Commanders of the Polish Armed Forces
- destabilize Poland’s defence policy
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- stir up anti-U.S. sentiment in Poland
- test the reaction of the Polish society to anti-U.S. narratives

This identified disinformation operation is congruent with disinformation activities carried out by the Russian Federation against PL.
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