Thread by @EliotHiggins

It's been brought to my attention that there's videos published on social media claiming I've made various statements about the US election, related to election integrity. These are part of a Russian disinformation campaign, and the quotes are fabricated, but it's nice to know the Russians hold the value of my opinions in such high regard.

I've previously discussed other videos in this campaign in the below thread:

https://x.com/EliotHiggins/status/1838872568041816103

More details of the campaign can be found in this thread

https://x.com/O_Rob1nson/status/1852833878827839580

Throughout this campaign we've received emails from people behind it trying to get us engaged in the campaign. I've been sharing some of the links with comments to see if they react to my comments, which they do, confirming they're paying close attention to how we react to their campaign.

For example, a number of videos quoted a former Bellingcat member as a current member of the team. I purposely pointed out he wasn't to see if they'd adjust the content of their videos to reflect that, which they did, confirming they were following my reaction to their videos.

One thing about this campaign which came across as really dumb is its use of fake QR verification codes, which none of the organisations featured in the fake videos use. It's made it really easy to identify the fake videos and the bot network sharing them.

Another fresh post trying to influence the US election, again using Bellingcat's reputation in an attempt to launder it. Note how it has 228 retweets and 396 likes, but only 12 views, a clear sign of inauthentic engagement.

We've also just been sent another email trying to get us to engage with the fake stories being created by the Russian influence op trying to undermine the integrity of the US election.

Another fake from the bot network with a fake "Bellingcat verified" QR code, caught before it's been boosted by the network, clearly trying to make out the election was fraudulent.

Another fake posted in the last hour falsely claims the FBI is urging citizen to vote remotely, again with a fake verified logo. For some reason, these fake QR codes have started being posted with jigsaw pieces in recent weeks, no idea why.