Layla Mashkoor
LightNews LightNews
banner
laylam.bsky.social
Layla Mashkoor
@laylam.bsky.social
4.1K followers 470 following 110 posts
Deputy Director of Research, @dfrlab.bsky.social.
Posts Replies Media Videos
Pinned
laylam.bsky.social
Layla Mashkoor @laylam.bsky.social · Mar 1
Book is out today! I had the privilege of contributing a chapter to “Age of Doubt: Building Trust in a World of Misinformation.”

Read this to understand how we got to where we are today—and where we go next.

publishing.monash.edu/product/age-...
Age of Doubt - Monash University Publishing
Today, trust seems harder to find than ever before. It's hardly surprising we feel that way. Our politics is polarised, our online world is awash with misinformation, and we’ve lost faith in our bedro...
publishing.monash.edu
Reposted by Layla Mashkoor
newsguy.bsky.social
RFE/RL, which has sued Kari Lake to block her termination of its federal funding grants, resumes shortwave radio broadcasts into Iran following the imposition of an internet blackout by the Islamic Republic. about.rferl.org/article/radio...
Radio Farda Returns to Shortwave, Bypassing Iran’s Digital Blackout
Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) has today resumed shortwave radio broadcasts into Iran following the imposition of an internet blackout by the Islamic Republic.
about.rferl.org
January 11, 2026 at 3:24 AM
Reposted by Layla Mashkoor
shashj.bsky.social
I wrote on the Iranian regime's effort to impose a digital blackout to cover up the scale of its repression. News still getting out, but less than before. Starlink hard to jam, but jamming GPS can disrupt Starlink ground terminals. No magic cyber solution. www.economist.com/middle-east-...
How Iran’s regime has hidden its brutal crackdown
It has cut off communication, but outsiders might help Iranians get back online
www.economist.com
January 12, 2026 at 9:30 PM
laylam.bsky.social
Spoke to the Washington Post for this article about @dfrlab.bsky.social’s research into the online chaos that followed Maduro’s capture.
washingtonpost.com The Washington Post @washingtonpost.com · 9d
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
Reposted by Layla Mashkoor
apnews.com
Malaysia and Indonesia become the first countries to block Grok, the artificial intelligence chatbot developed by Elon Musk’s xAI, after authorities said it was being misused to generate sexually explicit and non-consensual images.
Malaysia, Indonesia become first to block Musk’s Grok over AI deepfakes
Malaysia and Indonesia have blocked access to Elon Musk's AI chatbot Grok due to its misuse in generating explicit images.
bit.ly
January 12, 2026 at 6:30 AM
Reposted by Layla Mashkoor
shashj.bsky.social
"A medic at one Tehran hospital said there were "direct shots to the heads of the young people, to their hearts as well", while a doctor said an eye hospital in the capital had gone into crisis mode"
www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
Iran medics describe hospitals overwhelmed with dead and injured protesters
Hundreds of people are believed to have been killed and injured by the security forces, with more than 70 bodies brought to one hospital.
www.bbc.co.uk
January 10, 2026 at 10:05 PM
Reposted by Layla Mashkoor
chadbourn.bsky.social
An image that captures what’s happening in Iran: a female protester raises a ripped down surveillance camera.

Photo via the Hengaw Organisation for Human Rights.
B&w photo of woman with surveillance camera
January 6, 2026 at 11:31 PM
Reposted by Layla Mashkoor
joeuchill.bsky.social
Twitter‘s solution to making CSAM for free is to make CSAM for profit.
Limiting Grok AI image edits to paid users 'insulting' to victims, says No 10
It comes after government urged Ofcom to use all its powers – up to and including an effective ban – against X.
www.bbc.com
January 9, 2026 at 12:36 PM
laylam.bsky.social
Internet traffc in Iran dropped to effectively zero as of 18:45 UTC (22:15 PM local time) on 1/8, signaling a complete shutdown in the country, and disconnection from the global internet -Cloudfare

radar.cloudflare.com/traffic/ir?d...

www.theguardian.com/world/2026/j...
January 9, 2026 at 8:30 AM
Reposted by Layla Mashkoor
maggieastor.bsky.social
Copy Editing Matters, from HHS's release on the new childhood vaccine schedule: All the diseases will still be available to anyone who wants them
Ensures that all the diseases covered by the previous immunization schedule will still be available to anyone who wants them through Affordable Care Act insurance plans and federal insurance programs, including Medicaid, the Children’s Health Insurance Program, and the Vaccines for Children program. Families will not have to purchase them out of pocket. Among peer nations, the U.S. will continue to offer the most childhood vaccines for free to those who want them.
January 6, 2026 at 1:12 AM
laylam.bsky.social
Russia sanctions 28 Canadians. The list largely targets researchers, many from HREC (holodomor.ca), plus @socialmedialab.ca.

A clear sign these organizations are doing excellent work that should be protected and supported.

news.zerkalo.io/world/117383...
Россия закрыла въезд для 28 канадских граждан, «продвигающих неонацистскую идеологию»
Решение принято в ответ на ранее введенные Оттавой ограничения в отношении российских граждан и структур.
news.zerkalo.io
January 6, 2026 at 5:56 AM
Reposted by Layla Mashkoor
raphae.li
Many are just waking up to the Grok-nonconsensual images story as these pictures began flooding X over the holidays, but here’s our piece from Jan 2 featuring a victim, Julie Yukari, who was brave enough to speak on the record and on camera:

www.reuters.com/legal/litiga...
Elon Musk's Grok AI floods X with sexualized photos of women and minors
When contacted by Reuters for comment by email, xAI replied with the message "Legacy Media Lies."
www.reuters.com
January 5, 2026 at 3:31 PM
Reposted by Layla Mashkoor
ldobsonhughes.bsky.social
Genuinely find this upsetting to watch.

It’s the live and mass violation of women for daring to exist outside the narrow confines of a controlled and sexualised plaything for men
eliothiggins.bsky.social Eliot Higgins @eliothiggins.bsky.social · 14d
One example of how Grok is being used to target women. Swedish Deputy Prime Minister Ebba Busch being sexualised, degraded, and humiliated step-by-step by Grok. All the images accurately reflect the prompts provided.
January 5, 2026 at 5:45 PM
Reposted by Layla Mashkoor
peark.es
Reuters natsec reporter Phil Stewart: "Venezuela orders police to find, arrest anyone involved in supporting U.S. attack-decree"
January 5, 2026 at 3:22 PM
laylam.bsky.social
It is an inalienable tenet of modern life that disinformation, much of it now AI-generated, will spread in the wake of breaking news events

www.wired.com/story/disinf...
Disinformation Floods Social Media After Nicolás Maduro’s Capture
From seemingly AI-generated videos to repurposed old footage, TikTok, Instagram, and X did little to stop the onslaught of misleading posts in the wake of the US invasion of Venezuela.
www.wired.com
January 5, 2026 at 3:29 PM
Reposted by Layla Mashkoor
laylam.bsky.social
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...
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
laylam.bsky.social
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...
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
Reposted by Layla Mashkoor
phillewis.bsky.social
Colin and Sophie Hortman, the children of Minnesota state Rep. Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark, are asking Trump to remove the false posts about their parents' killing:
My father and mother, Mark Hortman and Melissa Hortman, and their dog Gilbert, were killed by a man who believed conspiracy theories and fake news. Words matter. Sharing fake news is dangerous. One part of my grief journey has been understanding the last conversation with my mother. She loved her job. People respected her job and what she did at her job. When I called her after the legislative session ended, I asked why she voted for the bill mentioned in the video shared by President Trump, and she wept. That bill and her vote had nothing to do with fraud. She voted for that bill because it was the only way to avoid a government shutdown. She had seen the impact of shutdowns: people lose their health care, their jobs, and in some cases, from a story she told me, have taken their own lives. She was in a very tough position on that vote. She had never really voted against her conscience like that. It was emotional and extremely difficult. Her struggle with that vote makes this conspiracy all the more painful for me. I am asking President Trump to remove the video that he shared and apologize to me and my family for posting this misinformation and for using my mother's own words to dishonor her memory. My sister Sophia Hortman (Sophie) asked me to share this on her behalf, she is off social media: "The video shared by President Donald Trump on Truth Social is a painful, false twisting of my mother's final vote. The vote she made was incredibly difficult for my mother; it was not a vote made lightly or with malice in her heart. She made the decision to prevent a government shutdown because she believed our great state protects and helps Minnesotans. We must create a society in which we do not harbor hatred and violence toward our political opponents, and this video promotes a false narrative which fuels the flames of political division. The video being shared by the president is another hurdle our family must overcome in grieving the loss of my parents, Mark and Melissa, and their beloved Gilbert. I ask President Trump to please consider the pain and sadness we have faced, and to honor the spirit of the holidays we have just spent without our parents by taking down the post on Truth Social." Please share our message and help us ask the President to take this down.
January 5, 2026 at 2:13 AM
Reposted by Layla Mashkoor
nardwuarserviette.bsky.social
I am honoured to announce I’ve been appointed as a member to the Order of Canada. Thank you to everyone for the support! I dedicate this to my late Mom who taught me so much about history, local independent media & research. I know that she would be, like me, screaming with joy! #orderofcanada
December 31, 2025 at 1:24 PM
laylam.bsky.social
It has been a year of challenges and turbulence, but the work continues.

dfrlab.org/2025/12/31/t...
The DFRLab reflects on 2025
The DFRLab's 2025 investigations expose global attempts to undermine democracies, erode public trust, and weaponize emerging technologies.
dfrlab.org
December 31, 2025 at 11:33 AM
Reposted by Layla Mashkoor
washingtonpost.com
Exclusive: Internal documents reveal Meta pursued a yearslong strategy to bring more teens to Instagram even after critics said it wasn’t safe.
Leaked documents show Instagram’s plan to win back teens
Instagram has pursued a yearslong strategy to win teens back to the app after its critics said the platform wasn’t safe for them, documents obtained by The Post show.
www.washingtonpost.com
December 27, 2025 at 2:00 AM
Reposted by Layla Mashkoor
katestarbird.bsky.social
Good article, but I think we could add that many of the current government officials & influencers spreading political point-scoring falsehoods during crisis events HAVE BECOME gov officials & influencers BECAUSE of their bullshit-spreading talents. System effects of rotten attention dynamics.
Government Officials Once Stopped False Accusations After Violence. Now, Some Join In.
www.nytimes.com
December 27, 2025 at 12:46 AM
Reposted by Layla Mashkoor
yasharali.bsky.social
NYC Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani on Mustapha Kharbouch, the Palestinian student who was falsely accused last week of being the Brown University shooter by various racists and conspiracy theorists.
X.com Last week, online conspiracy theorists wrongfully blamed Mustapha Kharbouch, a young Palestinian student at Brown University, for the horrific shooting in early December because of a photo of him wearing a Keffiyeh. In the days since, Kharbouch has faced death threats and unimaginable Islamophobia and anti-Palestinian racism. Today, I had the privilege of speaking with Mustapha. I learned about his life as a bright-eyed scholar interested in international relations and Anthropology. He shared stories about his summer living in Sunnyside while he pursued an internship. He is considering a PhD and thinks about moving back to New York City one day if he can afford it. And I learned about his Palestinian heritage, the very heritage he was doxxed for. I told Mustapha that we would love to have him back in New York City, where — as Mayor — I will make it my job to cherish, protect, and celebrate all New Yorkers and combat Islamophobia and anti-Palestinian racism at every corner.
December 24, 2025 at 4:42 AM
Reposted by Layla Mashkoor
dfrlab.bsky.social
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
December 17, 2025 at 1:17 PM
Reposted by Layla Mashkoor
rsf.org
#Belarus: RSF reveals the existence of a previously unknown spyware tool, used since at least 2021 by the KGB against journalists. Installed after the physical confiscation of phones, #ResidentBat constitutes a grave violation of press freedom. RSF calls for a ban on these surveillance technologies.
Exclusive: RSF uncovers new spyware from Belarus
Reporters Without Borders (RSF)’s Digital Security Lab (DSL), working with the Eastern European organisation RESIDENT.NGO, has uncovered a previously unknown spyware tool used by the State Security Co...
rsf.org
December 17, 2025 at 8:33 AM
Reposted by Layla Mashkoor
laylam.bsky.social
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.
December 16, 2025 at 5:20 AM