Thread by @allthecitizens

💣 Extraordinary story exposing a team of Israeli hackers-for-hire who meddled in over 30 elections via social media accounts ⁦@guardian⁩ ⁦@carolecadwalla⁩ theguardian.com/world/2023/feb…

@guardian @carolecadwalla "When Team Jorge worked covertly on the Nigerian presidential race in 2015 it did so alongside Cambridge Analytica" @FbdnStories

"The methods and techniques described by Team Jorge raise new challenges for big tech platforms, which have for years struggled to prevent nefarious actors spreading falsehoods or breaching the security on their platforms."

"One of Team Jorge’s key services is a sophisticated software package, Advanced Impact Media Solutions, or Aims. It controls a vast army of thousands of fake social media profiles on Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, Telegram, Gmail, Instagram and YouTube".

"Hanan appears to have run at least some of his disinformation operations through an Israeli company, Demoman International, which is registered on a website run by the Israeli Ministry of Defense to promote defence exports".

@FbdnStories #Storykillers
CambridgeAnalytica

"This week Meta, the owner of Facebook, took down Aims-linked bots on its platform after reporters shared a sample of the fake accounts with the company".

"Hanan told reporters about his “blogger machine” – an automated system for creating websites that the Aims-controlled social media profiles could then use to spread fake news stories across the internet. “After you’ve created credibility, what do you do? Then you can manipulate"

“Today if someone has a Gmail, it means they have much more than just email,” Hanan said as he clicked through the target’s emails, draft folders, contacts and drives. #StoryKillers @guardian @carolecadwalla @FbdnStories

@guardian @carolecadwalla "The unit is run by Tal Hanan, a 50-year-old former Israeli special forces operative who now works privately using the pseudonym “Jorge”, and appears to have been working under the radar in elections in various countries for more than two decades"

@FbdnStories

Aims’: the software for hire that can control 30,000 fake online profiles

@guardian @bbclysedoucet @carolecadwalla @skirchy @manisha_bot

theguardian.com/world/2023/feb…