DFRLab
@dfrlab.bsky.social
The Atlantic Council's Digital Forensic Research Lab. Cultivating a global network of digital forensic analysts (#DigitalSherlocks) to combat disinformation.
🚨 How do we move beyond tracking individual incidents to understanding how influence actually works? A new report w/ @disinfo.eu @checkfirst.network @viginum.bsky.social, Cassini, @diplo.de @eudiplomacy.bsky.social offers a framework to analyze #FIMI at the operational level.
🔗 bit.ly/49UtAkx
🔗 bit.ly/49UtAkx
January 15, 2026 at 4:39 PM
🚨 How do we move beyond tracking individual incidents to understanding how influence actually works? A new report w/ @disinfo.eu @checkfirst.network @viginum.bsky.social, Cassini, @diplo.de @eudiplomacy.bsky.social offers a framework to analyze #FIMI at the operational level.
🔗 bit.ly/49UtAkx
🔗 bit.ly/49UtAkx
Reposted by DFRLab
Spoke to the Washington Post for this article about @dfrlab.bsky.social’s research into the online chaos that followed Maduro’s capture.
Russia and China have launched influence operations to quickly capitalize on controversy — this time surrounding the U.S. operation to seize the Venezuelan president — by spreading conspiracy theories and disingenuous content, researchers said.
How China and Russia are using Maduro’s capture to sway U.S. discourse
Chinese and Russian influence operations have sought to capitalize on the U.S. operation in Venezuela by spreading conspiracy theories, confusion and inflammatory claims, researchers say.
www.washingtonpost.com
January 12, 2026 at 4:15 PM
Spoke to the Washington Post for this article about @dfrlab.bsky.social’s research into the online chaos that followed Maduro’s capture.
🤖🇻🇪 Following #MadurosCapture, Chinese state-linked actors pushed a deliberate narrative online: the US is an destabilizing hegemon while Beijing is a defender of international law. @kentonthibaut.bsky.social unpacks the digital narrative battle fueled by memes & AI: bit.ly/49xWLIZ
AI, memes, and hashtags: How China is battling the US online over Venezuela
Chinese state media and inauthentic accounts promoted narratives of US decline.
bit.ly
January 12, 2026 at 9:55 PM
🤖🇻🇪 Following #MadurosCapture, Chinese state-linked actors pushed a deliberate narrative online: the US is an destabilizing hegemon while Beijing is a defender of international law. @kentonthibaut.bsky.social unpacks the digital narrative battle fueled by memes & AI: bit.ly/49xWLIZ
Reposted by DFRLab
Russia and China have launched influence operations to quickly capitalize on controversy — this time surrounding the U.S. operation to seize the Venezuelan president — by spreading conspiracy theories and disingenuous content, researchers said.
How China and Russia are using Maduro’s capture to sway U.S. discourse
Chinese and Russian influence operations have sought to capitalize on the U.S. operation in Venezuela by spreading conspiracy theories, confusion and inflammatory claims, researchers say.
www.washingtonpost.com
January 11, 2026 at 4:00 AM
Russia and China have launched influence operations to quickly capitalize on controversy — this time surrounding the U.S. operation to seize the Venezuelan president — by spreading conspiracy theories and disingenuous content, researchers said.
#ICYMI: @washingtonpost.com reports on how foreign actors reframed the Venezuela operation globally, drawing on new insights from DFRLab's @laylam.bsky.social @buziashvili.bsky.social @kentonthibaut.bsky.social & @nosumacero.bsky.social 🇻🇪
Russia and China have launched influence operations to quickly capitalize on controversy — this time surrounding the U.S. operation to seize the Venezuelan president — by spreading conspiracy theories and disingenuous content, researchers said.
How China and Russia are using Maduro’s capture to sway U.S. discourse
Chinese and Russian influence operations have sought to capitalize on the U.S. operation in Venezuela by spreading conspiracy theories, confusion and inflammatory claims, researchers say.
www.washingtonpost.com
January 12, 2026 at 2:25 AM
#ICYMI: @washingtonpost.com reports on how foreign actors reframed the Venezuela operation globally, drawing on new insights from DFRLab's @laylam.bsky.social @buziashvili.bsky.social @kentonthibaut.bsky.social & @nosumacero.bsky.social 🇻🇪
Russia’s influence networks didn’t wait. Within hours of #NicolásMadurosCapture, pro-Kremlin actors launched coordinated narratives aimed at diluting US credibility online.
🔎 Analysis from @buziashvili.bsky.social tracks how it unfolded: bit.ly/4aOM5YI
🔎 Analysis from @buziashvili.bsky.social tracks how it unfolded: bit.ly/4aOM5YI
January 12, 2026 at 2:19 AM
Russia’s influence networks didn’t wait. Within hours of #NicolásMadurosCapture, pro-Kremlin actors launched coordinated narratives aimed at diluting US credibility online.
🔎 Analysis from @buziashvili.bsky.social tracks how it unfolded: bit.ly/4aOM5YI
🔎 Analysis from @buziashvili.bsky.social tracks how it unfolded: bit.ly/4aOM5YI
Reposted by DFRLab
Delcy Rodríguez's role as Venezuela's acting president is an impossible balancing act: satisfy Trump's demands, maintain support from the Chavista coalition, and keep alliances with China, Cuba, Iran, and Russia.
www.atlanticcouncil.org/dispatches/d...
@atlanticcouncil.bsky.social
www.atlanticcouncil.org/dispatches/d...
@atlanticcouncil.bsky.social
Delcy Rodríguez’s untenable balancing act
Venezuela’s new acting president must choose between accommodating the Trump administration’s demands and preserving unity among the regime’s Chavista base.
www.atlanticcouncil.org
January 8, 2026 at 10:00 PM
Delcy Rodríguez's role as Venezuela's acting president is an impossible balancing act: satisfy Trump's demands, maintain support from the Chavista coalition, and keep alliances with China, Cuba, Iran, and Russia.
www.atlanticcouncil.org/dispatches/d...
@atlanticcouncil.bsky.social
www.atlanticcouncil.org/dispatches/d...
@atlanticcouncil.bsky.social
🇻🇪 A new @washingtonpost.com exclusive spotlights how Russia & China launched coordinated influence campaigns after #NicolásMadurosCapture, drawing on DFRLab insight from @nosumacero.bsky.social @buziashvili.bsky.social @kentonthibaut.bsky.social & @laylam.bsky.social: wapo.st/4qch5qj
How China and Russia are using Maduro’s capture to sway U.S. discourse
Chinese and Russian influence operations have sought to capitalize on the U.S. operation in Venezuela by spreading conspiracy theories, confusion and inflammatory claims, researchers say.
wapo.st
January 10, 2026 at 6:49 PM
🇻🇪 A new @washingtonpost.com exclusive spotlights how Russia & China launched coordinated influence campaigns after #NicolásMadurosCapture, drawing on DFRLab insight from @nosumacero.bsky.social @buziashvili.bsky.social @kentonthibaut.bsky.social & @laylam.bsky.social: wapo.st/4qch5qj
Reposted by DFRLab
My team at the @dfrlab.bsky.social put this together after the insurrection, analyzing all the #stopthesteal data we had been tracking since the previous September.
#StopTheSteal: Timeline of Social Media and Extremist Activities Leading to 1/6 Insurrection
How a convergence of disinformation, domestic extremists and anti-democracy movements reached a horrifying climax at the U.S. Capitol.
www.justsecurity.org
January 6, 2026 at 2:29 PM
My team at the @dfrlab.bsky.social put this together after the insurrection, analyzing all the #stopthesteal data we had been tracking since the previous September.
2026 is just getting started, but the information threats we’re facing didn’t begin this year.
Before looking ahead, here’s what the DFRLab learned in 2025...and why those lessons matter now: bit.ly/4pvwTmX
Before looking ahead, here’s what the DFRLab learned in 2025...and why those lessons matter now: bit.ly/4pvwTmX
January 8, 2026 at 8:44 PM
2026 is just getting started, but the information threats we’re facing didn’t begin this year.
Before looking ahead, here’s what the DFRLab learned in 2025...and why those lessons matter now: bit.ly/4pvwTmX
Before looking ahead, here’s what the DFRLab learned in 2025...and why those lessons matter now: bit.ly/4pvwTmX
What comes after #Maduro? 🇻🇪
Join the @atlanticcouncil.bsky.social on Jan 6 for expert insights on Venezuela’s path forward featuring @nosumacero.bsky.social, Senior Research Fellow at the DFRLab's Democracy+Tech Initiative.
Register now: bit.ly/4jrcjmp
Join the @atlanticcouncil.bsky.social on Jan 6 for expert insights on Venezuela’s path forward featuring @nosumacero.bsky.social, Senior Research Fellow at the DFRLab's Democracy+Tech Initiative.
Register now: bit.ly/4jrcjmp
After Maduro: A new dawn for Venezuela
Regional experts unpack the implications of the US military operation to remove Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro from power on January 3.
bit.ly
January 5, 2026 at 7:51 PM
What comes after #Maduro? 🇻🇪
Join the @atlanticcouncil.bsky.social on Jan 6 for expert insights on Venezuela’s path forward featuring @nosumacero.bsky.social, Senior Research Fellow at the DFRLab's Democracy+Tech Initiative.
Register now: bit.ly/4jrcjmp
Join the @atlanticcouncil.bsky.social on Jan 6 for expert insights on Venezuela’s path forward featuring @nosumacero.bsky.social, Senior Research Fellow at the DFRLab's Democracy+Tech Initiative.
Register now: bit.ly/4jrcjmp
Reposted by DFRLab
My colleagues at the @dfrlab.bsky.social look at how inauthentic social media activity exploits political and security events to seed division between Poland and Ukraine:
How social media manipulation fuels anti-Ukraine sentiment in Poland
How inauthentic social media activity exploits political and security events to seed division between Poland and Ukraine.
dfrlab.org
December 24, 2025 at 1:14 PM
My colleagues at the @dfrlab.bsky.social look at how inauthentic social media activity exploits political and security events to seed division between Poland and Ukraine:
Reposted by DFRLab
The DFRLab has long tracked the digital means that aided in Venezuela's descent into autocracy.
As Venezuela enters a pivotal moment, it is worth revisiting how Maduro weaponized digital tools. See 2024 report: "Venezuela: A Playbook for Digital Repression”
www.atlanticcouncil.org/in-depth-res...
As Venezuela enters a pivotal moment, it is worth revisiting how Maduro weaponized digital tools. See 2024 report: "Venezuela: A Playbook for Digital Repression”
www.atlanticcouncil.org/in-depth-res...
How Venezuela became a model for digital authoritarianism
This report dives deep into the state of media in Venezuela and the role it played in the country's slide toward authoritarianism.
www.atlanticcouncil.org
January 5, 2026 at 11:32 AM
The DFRLab has long tracked the digital means that aided in Venezuela's descent into autocracy.
As Venezuela enters a pivotal moment, it is worth revisiting how Maduro weaponized digital tools. See 2024 report: "Venezuela: A Playbook for Digital Repression”
www.atlanticcouncil.org/in-depth-res...
As Venezuela enters a pivotal moment, it is worth revisiting how Maduro weaponized digital tools. See 2024 report: "Venezuela: A Playbook for Digital Repression”
www.atlanticcouncil.org/in-depth-res...
Reposted by DFRLab
I’ll be moderating this discussion on Wednesday on lessons from Moldova’s elections. Anyone who cares about information or election integrity should be closing watching what is unfolding in Moldova.
📅 Dec 17 | 8:30 AM ET
What can #Moldova2025Elections teach us about countering foreign information manipulation?
Join DFRLab’s @victoriaolari.bsky.social & @buziashvili.bsky.social for a discussion and report launch under the FIMI ISAC’s FDEI project: bit.ly/49cY1lG
What can #Moldova2025Elections teach us about countering foreign information manipulation?
Join DFRLab’s @victoriaolari.bsky.social & @buziashvili.bsky.social for a discussion and report launch under the FIMI ISAC’s FDEI project: bit.ly/49cY1lG
Lessons on countering foreign manipulation from Moldova’s 2025 elections
The Atlantic Council’s Digital Forensic Research Lab discusses lessons learned from safeguarding the 2025 elections in Moldova against foreign information manipulation and interference.
bit.ly
December 16, 2025 at 5:20 AM
I’ll be moderating this discussion on Wednesday on lessons from Moldova’s elections. Anyone who cares about information or election integrity should be closing watching what is unfolding in Moldova.
Join us today @ 8:30 AM ET | 2:30 PM CET for key lessons from Moldova’s 2025 elections w/ DFRLab's @buziashvili.bsky.social @victoriaolari.bsky.social & @laylam.bsky.social
bit.ly/49cY1lG
bit.ly/49cY1lG
December 17, 2025 at 1:17 PM
Join us today @ 8:30 AM ET | 2:30 PM CET for key lessons from Moldova’s 2025 elections w/ DFRLab's @buziashvili.bsky.social @victoriaolari.bsky.social & @laylam.bsky.social
bit.ly/49cY1lG
bit.ly/49cY1lG
📅 Dec 17 | 8:30 AM ET
What can #Moldova2025Elections teach us about countering foreign information manipulation?
Join DFRLab’s @victoriaolari.bsky.social & @buziashvili.bsky.social for a discussion and report launch under the FIMI ISAC’s FDEI project: bit.ly/49cY1lG
What can #Moldova2025Elections teach us about countering foreign information manipulation?
Join DFRLab’s @victoriaolari.bsky.social & @buziashvili.bsky.social for a discussion and report launch under the FIMI ISAC’s FDEI project: bit.ly/49cY1lG
Lessons on countering foreign manipulation from Moldova’s 2025 elections
The Atlantic Council’s Digital Forensic Research Lab discusses lessons learned from safeguarding the 2025 elections in Moldova against foreign information manipulation and interference.
bit.ly
December 15, 2025 at 6:02 PM
📅 Dec 17 | 8:30 AM ET
What can #Moldova2025Elections teach us about countering foreign information manipulation?
Join DFRLab’s @victoriaolari.bsky.social & @buziashvili.bsky.social for a discussion and report launch under the FIMI ISAC’s FDEI project: bit.ly/49cY1lG
What can #Moldova2025Elections teach us about countering foreign information manipulation?
Join DFRLab’s @victoriaolari.bsky.social & @buziashvili.bsky.social for a discussion and report launch under the FIMI ISAC’s FDEI project: bit.ly/49cY1lG
🇲🇩 Facing dynamically evolving propaganda threats, Moldova’s information space is under sustained pressure. Our latest report w/ INFO OPS Poland examines how foreign actors exploit polarization & media fragmentation to shape public opinion bit.ly/4pV46cj
Study of the Information Environment: MOLDOVA - Disinfo Digest
The "MUGA Project – An Examination of the Information Environment: Moldova" report was created in response to the growing threats of propaganda and disinformation, which increasingly affect the politi...
bit.ly
November 28, 2025 at 4:58 AM
🇲🇩 Facing dynamically evolving propaganda threats, Moldova’s information space is under sustained pressure. Our latest report w/ INFO OPS Poland examines how foreign actors exploit polarization & media fragmentation to shape public opinion bit.ly/4pV46cj
🇨🇦In Toronto, the DFRLab joined @globalaffairs.canada.ca’s Rapid Response Mechanism (RRM Canada) & @utoronto.ca for the G7 Digital Transnational Repression Detection Academy Symposium launching a new initiative, strengthening how G7+ partners detect & counter digital transnational repression.
November 25, 2025 at 10:16 PM
🇨🇦In Toronto, the DFRLab joined @globalaffairs.canada.ca’s Rapid Response Mechanism (RRM Canada) & @utoronto.ca for the G7 Digital Transnational Repression Detection Academy Symposium launching a new initiative, strengthening how G7+ partners detect & counter digital transnational repression.
🇺🇦 Despite developing remarkable resilience since 2014, #Ukraine’s information space remains deeply contested. Our latest report w/ INFO OPS Poland shows how years of conflict have reshaped the information environment: bit.ly/4pypCDt
Information environment research: UKRAINE - Disinfo Digest
The report, "Information Environment Research: Ukraine," was developed as part of the MUGA project, implemented by the INFO OPS Poland Foundation and DFRLab (Atlantic Council). Its primary objective i...
bit.ly
November 24, 2025 at 9:37 PM
🇺🇦 Despite developing remarkable resilience since 2014, #Ukraine’s information space remains deeply contested. Our latest report w/ INFO OPS Poland shows how years of conflict have reshaped the information environment: bit.ly/4pypCDt
🇦🇲Our latest report under #ProjectMUGA w/ INFO OPS Poland Foundation digs into the fault lines that make Armenia especially vulnerable to foreign influence, and how Russia is exploiting this moment of political and social transition.
Read now: bit.ly/4peZ0XH
Read now: bit.ly/4peZ0XH
Information environment research – Armenia - Disinfo Digest
Raport: Analysis of Armenia's information environment The report you hold was prepared as part of the MUGA project, implemented by the INFO OPS Poland Foundation and DFRLab (Atlantic Council). Its goa...
bit.ly
November 19, 2025 at 7:37 PM
🇦🇲Our latest report under #ProjectMUGA w/ INFO OPS Poland Foundation digs into the fault lines that make Armenia especially vulnerable to foreign influence, and how Russia is exploiting this moment of political and social transition.
Read now: bit.ly/4peZ0XH
Read now: bit.ly/4peZ0XH
📅Today @ 9AM ET
Join the Democracy+Tech Initiative as we explore how digital identity is reshaping governance across Africa: bit.ly/3K4IPxk
Have questions for the panelists? Visit askac.org to share your insight 💬
Join the Democracy+Tech Initiative as we explore how digital identity is reshaping governance across Africa: bit.ly/3K4IPxk
Have questions for the panelists? Visit askac.org to share your insight 💬
📅Nov 19 @ 9AM | Digital identity systems are transforming governance across Africa while raising big questions about privacy, inclusion & power. Join DFRLab's Democracy+Tech Initiative as we explore how digital identity is reshaping governance, elections & rights across the continent
bit.ly/3K4IPxk
bit.ly/3K4IPxk
Biometrics in Africa: The market behind digital identity
The Atlantic Council’s Democracy + Tech Initiative hosts a conversation on biometric and digital identification systems in Africa.
bit.ly
November 19, 2025 at 12:36 PM
📅Today @ 9AM ET
Join the Democracy+Tech Initiative as we explore how digital identity is reshaping governance across Africa: bit.ly/3K4IPxk
Have questions for the panelists? Visit askac.org to share your insight 💬
Join the Democracy+Tech Initiative as we explore how digital identity is reshaping governance across Africa: bit.ly/3K4IPxk
Have questions for the panelists? Visit askac.org to share your insight 💬
📅Nov 19 @ 9AM | Digital identity systems are transforming governance across Africa while raising big questions about privacy, inclusion & power. Join DFRLab's Democracy+Tech Initiative as we explore how digital identity is reshaping governance, elections & rights across the continent
bit.ly/3K4IPxk
bit.ly/3K4IPxk
Biometrics in Africa: The market behind digital identity
The Atlantic Council’s Democracy + Tech Initiative hosts a conversation on biometric and digital identification systems in Africa.
bit.ly
November 17, 2025 at 8:02 PM
📅Nov 19 @ 9AM | Digital identity systems are transforming governance across Africa while raising big questions about privacy, inclusion & power. Join DFRLab's Democracy+Tech Initiative as we explore how digital identity is reshaping governance, elections & rights across the continent
bit.ly/3K4IPxk
bit.ly/3K4IPxk
Reposted by DFRLab
Congratulations to the entire team at @dfrlab.bsky.social for the release of "Authoritarian reach and democratic response: A tactical framework to counter and prevent transnational repression (TNR)."
Authoritarian reach and democratic response: A tactical framework to counter and prevent transnational repression
When foreign governments conduct surveillance, intimidation, or enforcement actions, they undermine state sovereignty and threaten to erode public trust in institutions, representing a significant nat...
www.atlanticcouncil.org
October 27, 2025 at 1:24 PM
Congratulations to the entire team at @dfrlab.bsky.social for the release of "Authoritarian reach and democratic response: A tactical framework to counter and prevent transnational repression (TNR)."
#TransnationalRepression is reshaping how authoritarian regimes project power & target critics abroad. @marcuskolga.bsky.social @imleeszefung.bsky.social @kentonthibaut.bsky.social @nosumacero.bsky.social & @lisandranovo.bsky.social introduce a framework to counter these operations: bit.ly/3Xgfz9I
Authoritarian reach and democratic response: A tactical framework to counter and prevent transnational repression
When foreign governments conduct surveillance, intimidation, or enforcement actions, they undermine state sovereignty and threaten to erode public trust in institutions, representing a significant nat...
bit.ly
November 7, 2025 at 9:43 PM
#TransnationalRepression is reshaping how authoritarian regimes project power & target critics abroad. @marcuskolga.bsky.social @imleeszefung.bsky.social @kentonthibaut.bsky.social @nosumacero.bsky.social & @lisandranovo.bsky.social introduce a framework to counter these operations: bit.ly/3Xgfz9I
Reposted by DFRLab
Grokipedia sounds way too much like the pro-Kremlin Wikipedia knockoff Runiversalis, which @buziashvili.bsky.social and I wrote about for @dfrlab.bsky.social in 2022. dfrlab.org/2022/09/01/p...
October 28, 2025 at 12:36 PM
Grokipedia sounds way too much like the pro-Kremlin Wikipedia knockoff Runiversalis, which @buziashvili.bsky.social and I wrote about for @dfrlab.bsky.social in 2022. dfrlab.org/2022/09/01/p...