Putin sets his cyber sights on Britain: Russian president is set to unleash 'troll farms' on the West and could 'deploy saboteurs' to the UK - after Kremlin propagandists simulated NUKING Europe
- The Kremlin is ramping up the info war on Ukraine via a network of 'troll farms'
- Troll farms pay workers to saturate social media with pro-Putin, pro-war content
- One leading troll farm is Cyber Front Z, headquartered in St. Petersburg
- It helps Russian citizens to wage organised and targeted social media attacks
- Troll farms also aim to create friction between opposing groups on social media
- They were active in the run up to the 2016 and 2020 US elections in an attempt to sew discontent and undermine democracy
By DAVID AVERRE FOR MAILONLINE
PUBLISHED: 11:01 AEST, 1 May 2022 | UPDATED: 11:48 AEST, 1 May 2022
Vladimir Putin is believed to be ramping up the information war as the war in Ukraine continues to widen the gulf between Russia and the West.
The Kremlin has long maintained strict control over traditional print and broadcast media in Russia, but new UK government funded research has revealed Moscow is now conducting a large-scale cyber operation to spread support for the war in Ukraine over social media and via the comments sections of major media sites.
Online operatives were found to be ordering followers to target Western media outlets and politicians including Prime Minister Boris Johnson, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell, by posting pro-war comments on their social media accounts.
The social media profiles of bands and musicians including Daft Punk, David Guetta, Tiesto and Rammstein also appear to have been targeted by the disinformation operation, which is being waged by Russia's infamous 'troll farms'.
One such troll farm - the ominously-named 'Cyber Front Z' - is said to operate out of a rented warehouse in Russia's second city St. Petersburg, where workers are believed to be paid up to 45,000 roubles (£500) per month to post 200 pro-war and pro-Putin comments per day to platforms such as Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and TikTok.
The group uses messaging app Telegram to encourage Russians citizens to help wage its cyber war, organise targeted social media offensives and parrot Putin's rhetoric that Russia is freeing Ukraine from the grip of neo-Nazis and fascists.
It comes as senior officers from MI5 informed the Home Office that the threat of Russian saboteurs entering Britain to carry out attacks on key British infrastructure and target high-profile politicians had increased.
'There is a serious concern that officers or agents attached to Russia's security services may attempt to enter the UK and target strategic locations,' one security source told The Express.
Meanwhile, Russian state television earlier this week broadcast a segment which simulated how Putin could launch a three pronged nuclear strike on London, Paris and Berlin, leaving 'no survivors'.
Hosts on Channel One's 60 Minutes programme said the three capital cities could be hit within 200 seconds of nuclear missiles being launched, as chairman of the nationalist Rodina party, Aleksey Zhuravlyov, declared: 'one Sarmat missile and the British Isles will be no more.'
Vladimir Putin is believed to be ramping up the information war as the war in Ukraine continues to widen the gulf between Russia and the West
Online operatives were found to be ordering followers to target Western media outlets and politicians including Prime Minister Boris Johnson, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell, by posting pro-war comments on their social media accounts
The disinformation operation is being waged by Russia's infamous 'troll farms' like the ominously-named 'Cyber Front Z'. The group, which has over 94,000 subscribers on Telegram, is said to operate out of a rented warehouse in Russia's second city St. Petersburg, where workers are believed to be paid up to 45,000 roubles (£500) per month to post 200 pro-war and pro-Putin comments per day to platforms such as Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and TikTok
The government-funded research will soon be shared with Western media companies in an attempt to help them crack down on the Russian misinformation operation.
'Cyber Front Z', whose headquarters is allegedly located in rented space in St Petersburg's Arsenal Machine-building Factory, is believed to be one leading troll farm responsible for much of the Kremlin's social media offensive.
Researchers say the group seems to have learned from the tactics used by QAnon conspiracy theorists and from the Islamic State terror group, and appears to hire salaried workers while encouraging Russian citizens to join targeted 'social media attacks'.
A pinned message on the group's Telegram channel explains to Cyber Front Z's subscribers how they can help strengthen Russia's pro-war narrative.
'Friends, the main weapon of a cyber fighter is information! But for effective actions on the field of information war, efficiency is important, which means you should always have your orders to hand,' the post reads.
'Therefore, for your convenience, we will mark our posts with hashtags, each of which will correspond to a specific category. This will allow you to quickly find the information you need on the channel and apply it during the ''battle''.'
The channel goes on to list a series of distinctive calls to arms, directing its subscribers to begin sharing, posting and commenting on specific posts, profiles and platforms to saturate social media and media sites with pro-war content.
Cyber Front Z justifies the work as 'patriotic activity' in support of the 'special military operation' in Ukraine, and intermittently posts propagandistic images and slogans to stir support among its followers.
Some of the posters tell subscribers they are fighting for 'the freedom of our motherland from western colonialism,' while others say the fight will secure 'the right to count ourselves part of one united Russia.'
A propaganda poster shared on the Telegram channel of Russian troll farm Cyber Front Z. The title reads: 'What are we fighting for? Like always, we're fighting for our own!' The poster goes on to say: 'We're fighting for peace and security. For the freedom of our common homeland from western colonialism and global dictators. For the safety of our borders from aggressive NATO expansion. For a happy and peaceful future for us and our children.'
Russian state television earlier this week broadcast a segment which simulated how Putin could launch a three pronged nuclear strike on London, Paris and Berlin, leaving 'no survivors'
Another tactic of the troll farms is to manipulate polls published by Western media sites in an attempt to skew the results of a survey on whether sanctions against Russia were supported.
Foreign Secretary Liz Truss said yesterday: 'We cannot allow the Kremlin and its shady troll farms to invade our online spaces with their lies about Putin's illegal war.
'The UK Government has alerted international partners and will continue to work closely with allies and media platforms to undermine Russian information operations.'
The Foreign Office was not identifying the researchers behind the work amid concerns over their safety for conducting work critical of the Russian president's regime.
Culture Secretary Nadine Dorries said: 'These are insidious attempts by Putin and his propaganda machine to deceive the world about the brutality he's inflicting on the people of Ukraine.
'This evidence will help us to more effectively identify and remove Russian disinformation and follows our decisive action to block anyone from doing business with Kremlin-controlled outlets RT and Sputnik.'
The troll factory is suspected to be linked to Yevgeniy Prigozhin, the founder of the Internet Research Agency which is known to have been instrumental in causing friction between opposing groups in the US in the run up to the 2016 and 2020 presidential elections.
The oligarch and close Putin ally is also the lead financier of the infamous Wagner Group, a network of mercenaries essentially operating as the Russian president's private army.
Foreign Secretary Liz Truss said yesterday: 'We cannot allow the Kremlin and its shady troll farms to invade our online spaces with their lies about Putin's illegal war. The UK Government has alerted international partners and will continue to work closely with allies and media platforms to undermine Russian information operations'
The Five Eyes agencies issued a warning about the use of remote desktops and 'other potentially risky services'
The Cyber Front Z troll factory is suspected to be linked to Yevgeniy Prigozhin, the founder of the Internet Research Agency which is known to have been instrumental in causing friction between opposing groups in the US in the run up to the 2016 and 2020 presidential elections. The oligarch and close Putin ally is also the lead financier of the infamous Wagner Group, a network of mercenaries essentially operating as the Russian president's private army
Meanwhile, Ed Johnson, head of global intelligence at the Sibylline strategic risk group, said there are a range of possible targets for a would-be Russian saboteur in the UK.
'They'll aim to sow chaos, panic or distrust in the Government,' he told The Express, as MI5 briefed top government officials on the heightened security concerns.
'This could range from taking down a substation and amplifying the effect through a cyber attack, to bringing hard currency into Britain to finance separatist organisations, to targeting ministers, agents and officials and releasing embarrassing documents.'
The latest research into the activities of Russian troll factories comes just one week after Western intelligence agencies warned Russian state-sponsored hackers are targeting critical infrastructure - and cautioned that working from home increases the risk of a successful attack.
An alert was issued by agencies from the Five Eyes alliance - made up of Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the UK and US, on April 22, declaring the ongoing invasion of Ukraine and the imposition of sanctions would 'increase the risk of malicious cyber activity'.
The Five Eyes cybersecurity agencies urged those working in critical infrastructure to 'prepare for and mitigate potential cyber threats'.
Russian-linked cybercrime groups were said to have targeted critical IT systems, health services, a nuclear power plant, an airport, and government networks.
In their advice on how to mitigate against the Russian cyber threat, the agencies urged organisations to update software and enforce multi-factor authentication 'to the greatest extent possible'.
They also issued a warning about the use of remote desktops and 'other potentially risky services' - a major concern given the majority of Britain's civil service staff continue to work from home.
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Russian president is set to unleash his 'troll farms' as part of a fake news assault on the West
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