Colin Gerard
@colingerard.bsky.social
Team Leader @viginum.bsky.social
PhD in Geopolitics @univ-paris8.fr
Researcher @ifgeopolitique.bsky.social
Russian FP, IOs, OSINT investigations
Latest publication: https://therussiaprogram.org/russia_information_influence
PhD in Geopolitics @univ-paris8.fr
Researcher @ifgeopolitique.bsky.social
Russian FP, IOs, OSINT investigations
Latest publication: https://therussiaprogram.org/russia_information_influence
Reposted by Colin Gerard
Archiving the web is more important and more challenging than ever before. https://cnn.it/4phKzlW
November 16, 2025 at 3:01 PM
Archiving the web is more important and more challenging than ever before. https://cnn.it/4phKzlW
Reposted by Colin Gerard
The latest Storm-1516 disinformation campaign is targeting the Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy with one of their most bizarre claims alleging that Zelenskyy holds a Russian passport (which was allegedly issued in Crimea in 2015) and owns luxury real estate in Moscow
November 16, 2025 at 10:32 AM
The latest Storm-1516 disinformation campaign is targeting the Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy with one of their most bizarre claims alleging that Zelenskyy holds a Russian passport (which was allegedly issued in Crimea in 2015) and owns luxury real estate in Moscow
"Meta projected 10% of its 2024 revenue would come from ads for scams and banned goods, documents seen by Reuters show."
And how many percents of its revenue Meta projected to come from covert information operations? Do they even care?
www.reuters.com/investigatio...
And how many percents of its revenue Meta projected to come from covert information operations? Do they even care?
www.reuters.com/investigatio...
Meta is earning a fortune on a deluge of fraudulent ads, documents show
Meta projected 10% of its 2024 revenue would come from ads for scams and banned goods, and it internally estimates that its platforms show users 15 billion scam ads a day, company documents show.
www.reuters.com
November 8, 2025 at 2:00 PM
"Meta projected 10% of its 2024 revenue would come from ads for scams and banned goods, documents seen by Reuters show."
And how many percents of its revenue Meta projected to come from covert information operations? Do they even care?
www.reuters.com/investigatio...
And how many percents of its revenue Meta projected to come from covert information operations? Do they even care?
www.reuters.com/investigatio...
Reposted by Colin Gerard
#VIGINUM et Advens lancent Cyber for Good Media, un programme dédié aux journalistes pour renforcer leurs compétences en cybersécurité et en lutte contre la menace informationnelle.
🗞️ Intéressé ? Les inscriptions sont ouvertes jusqu'au 5 décembre (15 places disponibles)
➡️ cyberforgood.org/fr/media/
🗞️ Intéressé ? Les inscriptions sont ouvertes jusqu'au 5 décembre (15 places disponibles)
➡️ cyberforgood.org/fr/media/
November 3, 2025 at 1:52 PM
#VIGINUM et Advens lancent Cyber for Good Media, un programme dédié aux journalistes pour renforcer leurs compétences en cybersécurité et en lutte contre la menace informationnelle.
🗞️ Intéressé ? Les inscriptions sont ouvertes jusqu'au 5 décembre (15 places disponibles)
➡️ cyberforgood.org/fr/media/
🗞️ Intéressé ? Les inscriptions sont ouvertes jusqu'au 5 décembre (15 places disponibles)
➡️ cyberforgood.org/fr/media/
Reposted by Colin Gerard
Au procès des «mains rouges» sur le Mémorial de la Shoah : un raid «pensé et organisé» et la «gangrène» de l’antisémitisme
La motivation antisémite ou non des tags, pour lesquels quatre ressortissants bulgares sont jugés depuis mercredi, était au cœur de la deuxième journée d’audience.
La motivation antisémite ou non des tags, pour lesquels quatre ressortissants bulgares sont jugés depuis mercredi, était au cœur de la deuxième journée d’audience.
Au procès des «mains rouges» sur le Mémorial de la Shoah : un raid «pensé et organisé» et la «gangrène» de l’antisémitisme
La motivation antisémite ou non des tags retrouvés en mai 2024, pour lesquels quatre ressortissants bulgares sont jugés depuis mercredi, était au cœur de la deuxième journée d’audience. Le parquet a requis de deux à quatre ans de prison.
www.liberation.fr
October 31, 2025 at 11:42 AM
Au procès des «mains rouges» sur le Mémorial de la Shoah : un raid «pensé et organisé» et la «gangrène» de l’antisémitisme
La motivation antisémite ou non des tags, pour lesquels quatre ressortissants bulgares sont jugés depuis mercredi, était au cœur de la deuxième journée d’audience.
La motivation antisémite ou non des tags, pour lesquels quatre ressortissants bulgares sont jugés depuis mercredi, était au cœur de la deuxième journée d’audience.
Reposted by Colin Gerard
The CIA hacked and disrupted a computer network used by Venezuela’s security service in Trump’s 1st term, one of a series of covert actions US agencies took or considered taking as Trump increased pressure on Maduro: www.cnn.com/2025/10/29/p...
CIA cyberattacks targeting the Maduro regime didn’t satisfy Trump in his first term. Now the US is flexing its military might | CNN Politics
In the final year of President Donald Trump’s first administration, the CIA carried out a clandestine cyberattack against the Venezuelan government, disabling the computer network used by Venezuelan l...
www.cnn.com
October 29, 2025 at 2:48 PM
The CIA hacked and disrupted a computer network used by Venezuela’s security service in Trump’s 1st term, one of a series of covert actions US agencies took or considered taking as Trump increased pressure on Maduro: www.cnn.com/2025/10/29/p...
Reposted by Colin Gerard
1/ The Kremlin’s hierarchy is shifting.
The new "The Economist" story with my small contibutions explains how the war in Ukraine has elevated a new class — ultra-conservatives, relatives, and "svp" veterans — while sidelining old groups and technocrats in particular
www.economist.com/1843/2025/1...
The new "The Economist" story with my small contibutions explains how the war in Ukraine has elevated a new class — ultra-conservatives, relatives, and "svp" veterans — while sidelining old groups and technocrats in particular
www.economist.com/1843/2025/1...
October 26, 2025 at 6:53 PM
1/ The Kremlin’s hierarchy is shifting.
The new "The Economist" story with my small contibutions explains how the war in Ukraine has elevated a new class — ultra-conservatives, relatives, and "svp" veterans — while sidelining old groups and technocrats in particular
www.economist.com/1843/2025/1...
The new "The Economist" story with my small contibutions explains how the war in Ukraine has elevated a new class — ultra-conservatives, relatives, and "svp" veterans — while sidelining old groups and technocrats in particular
www.economist.com/1843/2025/1...
Reposted by Colin Gerard
One good thing about Russia's Matryoshka disinformation campaign emailing us their fake news posts everyday of the week is you can get a sense of what really worries Russia. The last few days have been dominated by videos about how unpopular Macron is for wanting to send Tomahawk missiles to Ukraine
October 16, 2025 at 7:53 AM
One good thing about Russia's Matryoshka disinformation campaign emailing us their fake news posts everyday of the week is you can get a sense of what really worries Russia. The last few days have been dominated by videos about how unpopular Macron is for wanting to send Tomahawk missiles to Ukraine
If you’re at #Disinfo2025 in Ljubljana, I’ll be presenting the concept of information manipulation set (IMS) we developed at @viginum.bsky.social.
🗓️This morning at 11.30am
📍Track 2 at Cankarjev Dom
@disinfo.eu
🗓️This morning at 11.30am
📍Track 2 at Cankarjev Dom
@disinfo.eu
October 16, 2025 at 6:43 AM
If you’re at #Disinfo2025 in Ljubljana, I’ll be presenting the concept of information manipulation set (IMS) we developed at @viginum.bsky.social.
🗓️This morning at 11.30am
📍Track 2 at Cankarjev Dom
@disinfo.eu
🗓️This morning at 11.30am
📍Track 2 at Cankarjev Dom
@disinfo.eu
Reposted by Colin Gerard
NEW: Since October 2023, the IDF Spokesperson's Unit has released dozens of 3D animations illustrating alleged Hamas, Hezbollah, and Iranian sites
The style is now unmistakable: satellite zoom-ins, black & white wireframes, and red-textured houses - a new visual language of war
The style is now unmistakable: satellite zoom-ins, black & white wireframes, and red-textured houses - a new visual language of war
October 8, 2025 at 4:58 PM
NEW: Since October 2023, the IDF Spokesperson's Unit has released dozens of 3D animations illustrating alleged Hamas, Hezbollah, and Iranian sites
The style is now unmistakable: satellite zoom-ins, black & white wireframes, and red-textured houses - a new visual language of war
The style is now unmistakable: satellite zoom-ins, black & white wireframes, and red-textured houses - a new visual language of war
Reposted by Colin Gerard
We are grateful to the BlueSky @Safety.bsky.app team who suspended the entire list of 219 accounts that we found so far for this network.
October 8, 2025 at 9:27 AM
We are grateful to the BlueSky @Safety.bsky.app team who suspended the entire list of 219 accounts that we found so far for this network.
Reposted by Colin Gerard
NEW REPORT: We uncovered a coordinated network of fake X profiles that is spreading AI-generated content to induce revolt in #Iran. We call this network “PRISONBREAK”.
Read the report 👉 citizenlab.ca/2025/10/ai-e...
Read the report 👉 citizenlab.ca/2025/10/ai-e...
We Say You Want a Revolution: PRISONBREAK - An AI-Enabled Influence Operation Aimed at Overthrowing the Iranian Regime - The Citizen Lab
We investigate a coordinated network of inauthentic X accounts that is spreading AI-generated content to induce revolt in Iran. The network has been active since 2023, but increased activity during th...
citizenlab.ca
October 3, 2025 at 4:40 PM
NEW REPORT: We uncovered a coordinated network of fake X profiles that is spreading AI-generated content to induce revolt in #Iran. We call this network “PRISONBREAK”.
Read the report 👉 citizenlab.ca/2025/10/ai-e...
Read the report 👉 citizenlab.ca/2025/10/ai-e...
Reposted by Colin Gerard
The latest Storm-1516 disinformation campaign is targeting France and Macron. The campaign is alleging that the French president is building a luxury bunker, which costs 148 million euro.
October 2, 2025 at 8:45 AM
The latest Storm-1516 disinformation campaign is targeting France and Macron. The campaign is alleging that the French president is building a luxury bunker, which costs 148 million euro.
Reposted by Colin Gerard
ISD reveals how a Czech-language community of 70 accounts on X systematically spreads Kremlin-aligned messages ahead of the parliamentary elections.
Investigation | An anti-Ukrainian community on X: A gateway for Russian propaganda in the Czech information space
A Czech X community of 70 accounts is acting as a conduit for Kremlin propaganda, amplifying anti-Ukraine narratives ahead of the 2025 elections.
www.isdglobal.org
October 2, 2025 at 9:05 AM
ISD reveals how a Czech-language community of 70 accounts on X systematically spreads Kremlin-aligned messages ahead of the parliamentary elections.
Reposted by Colin Gerard
Russian-born restaurateurs sent dozens of batches of banned chemicals from Barcelona to Russia that could be used for weapons
A new investigation by Important Stories, Slidstvo.Info, the Belarusian Investigative Center, the OCCRP and others details shipments of the industrial chemical NMP.
A new investigation by Important Stories, Slidstvo.Info, the Belarusian Investigative Center, the OCCRP and others details shipments of the industrial chemical NMP.
Russian-born restaurateurs sent dozens of batches of banned chemicals from Barcelona to Russia that could be used for weapons
The Oleynikovs, a family of restaurateurs based in Barcelona, shipped at least 36 batches of restricted chemicals to Russia between 2022 and 2024, a joint investigation by the independent Russian outl...
theins.press
September 30, 2025 at 8:58 PM
Russian-born restaurateurs sent dozens of batches of banned chemicals from Barcelona to Russia that could be used for weapons
A new investigation by Important Stories, Slidstvo.Info, the Belarusian Investigative Center, the OCCRP and others details shipments of the industrial chemical NMP.
A new investigation by Important Stories, Slidstvo.Info, the Belarusian Investigative Center, the OCCRP and others details shipments of the industrial chemical NMP.
Reposted by Colin Gerard
Têtes de cochon devant des mosquées : l’enquête privilégie la piste du renseignement militaire russe
Têtes de cochon devant des mosquées : l’enquête privilégie la piste du renseignement militaire russe
Une même personne, domiciliée en Serbie, aurait actionné les hommes de main à l’origine de cette action de déstabilisation, menée le 8 septembre, mais aussi à celle de la dégradation du Mémorial de la Shoah le 30 mai.
www.lemonde.fr
September 27, 2025 at 3:33 AM
Têtes de cochon devant des mosquées : l’enquête privilégie la piste du renseignement militaire russe
Reposted by Colin Gerard
🧵 For Trump's admin, influencing its citizens with a bot network seems becoming an ordinary routine.
Today's US is one of the first G7 powers that uses bots domestically outside of an election cycle—what for a long time used to be exclusive to authoritarian states.
1/
Today's US is one of the first G7 powers that uses bots domestically outside of an election cycle—what for a long time used to be exclusive to authoritarian states.
1/
September 11, 2025 at 9:27 AM
🧵 For Trump's admin, influencing its citizens with a bot network seems becoming an ordinary routine.
Today's US is one of the first G7 powers that uses bots domestically outside of an election cycle—what for a long time used to be exclusive to authoritarian states.
1/
Today's US is one of the first G7 powers that uses bots domestically outside of an election cycle—what for a long time used to be exclusive to authoritarian states.
1/
Reposted by Colin Gerard
BREAKING:
🇲🇩 Moldova parliamentary elections are more important for the Russian state to interfere than these 2024-2025 elections _combined_:
🇺🇸 US, presidential
🇩🇪 Germany, parliamentary
🇵🇱 Poland, presidential
...as measured by an effort spent on a bot network. 🧵
🇲🇩 Moldova parliamentary elections are more important for the Russian state to interfere than these 2024-2025 elections _combined_:
🇺🇸 US, presidential
🇩🇪 Germany, parliamentary
🇵🇱 Poland, presidential
...as measured by an effort spent on a bot network. 🧵
September 19, 2025 at 4:24 PM
BREAKING:
🇲🇩 Moldova parliamentary elections are more important for the Russian state to interfere than these 2024-2025 elections _combined_:
🇺🇸 US, presidential
🇩🇪 Germany, parliamentary
🇵🇱 Poland, presidential
...as measured by an effort spent on a bot network. 🧵
🇲🇩 Moldova parliamentary elections are more important for the Russian state to interfere than these 2024-2025 elections _combined_:
🇺🇸 US, presidential
🇩🇪 Germany, parliamentary
🇵🇱 Poland, presidential
...as measured by an effort spent on a bot network. 🧵
Reposted by Colin Gerard
«Politzek, les voix qui défient le Kremlin», une plongée dans la nuit sans fin des opposants russes. Rencontre pour @liberation.fr avec la réalisatrice russe Ekaterina Mamontova, réfugiée à Paris.
À voir absolument sur @francetv.bsky.social dimanche soir
www.liberation.fr/internationa...
À voir absolument sur @francetv.bsky.social dimanche soir
www.liberation.fr/internationa...
Dans «Politzek, les voix qui défient le Kremlin», Ekaterina Mamontova plonge dans la nuit sans fin des opposants russes
Peu avant la diffusion de son documentaire ce dimanche sur France 5, la réalisatrice, qui a fui la Russie il y a quelques semaines, revient sur la douleur de son exil et la nécessité de continuer à fa...
www.liberation.fr
September 20, 2025 at 12:27 PM
«Politzek, les voix qui défient le Kremlin», une plongée dans la nuit sans fin des opposants russes. Rencontre pour @liberation.fr avec la réalisatrice russe Ekaterina Mamontova, réfugiée à Paris.
À voir absolument sur @francetv.bsky.social dimanche soir
www.liberation.fr/internationa...
À voir absolument sur @francetv.bsky.social dimanche soir
www.liberation.fr/internationa...
Reposted by Colin Gerard
The latest Storm-1516 disinformation campaign is targeting Olena Zelenska, the wife of Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy. The campaign alleges luxury purchases totalling in more than 1 million euro.
September 19, 2025 at 10:43 AM
The latest Storm-1516 disinformation campaign is targeting Olena Zelenska, the wife of Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy. The campaign alleges luxury purchases totalling in more than 1 million euro.
Reposted by Colin Gerard
Looks like the latest Storm-1516 disinformation campaign targeting France. The campaign includes a video with a group of the alleged "Islamic extremists", who are threatening to make France an "islamic state" and are slashing the French flag in the end of the video.
September 16, 2025 at 10:40 AM
Looks like the latest Storm-1516 disinformation campaign targeting France. The campaign includes a video with a group of the alleged "Islamic extremists", who are threatening to make France an "islamic state" and are slashing the French flag in the end of the video.
Reposted by Colin Gerard
Mon interview dans @liberation.fr sur les nouvelles "mesures actives" qui touchent l'Europe et la nécessité de cesser de systématiquement mordre à l'hameçon que nous tendent les commanditaires de ces ingérences, après l'affaire des têtes de cochon.
www.liberation.fr/societe/inge...
www.liberation.fr/societe/inge...
Ingérences étrangères : «Peu de pays en Europe échappent à ce phénomène»
Depuis deux ans, les affaires d'ingérence se sont multipliées en France. Des opérations qui rejoignent l’objectif de la Russie et de ses alliés d’amplifier les fractures des sociétés européennes, rapp...
www.liberation.fr
September 16, 2025 at 6:56 AM
Mon interview dans @liberation.fr sur les nouvelles "mesures actives" qui touchent l'Europe et la nécessité de cesser de systématiquement mordre à l'hameçon que nous tendent les commanditaires de ces ingérences, après l'affaire des têtes de cochon.
www.liberation.fr/societe/inge...
www.liberation.fr/societe/inge...
Reposted by Colin Gerard
Spies, banquets, and embezzlement: The inner workings of Putin's “cultural ties” directorate
Run by former career spies, the unit sought to project Russia's “soft power” across the post-Soviet space, with lavish spending but lackluster results.
Run by former career spies, the unit sought to project Russia's “soft power” across the post-Soviet space, with lavish spending but lackluster results.
Spies, banquets, and embezzlement: The inner workings of Putin’s “cultural ties” directorate
The Kremlin’s department for destabilizing the Russian near abroad is undergoing a makeover. Before the start of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Moscow’s Directorate for Interregional and Cultural...
theins.press
September 12, 2025 at 7:13 AM
Spies, banquets, and embezzlement: The inner workings of Putin's “cultural ties” directorate
Run by former career spies, the unit sought to project Russia's “soft power” across the post-Soviet space, with lavish spending but lackluster results.
Run by former career spies, the unit sought to project Russia's “soft power” across the post-Soviet space, with lavish spending but lackluster results.
Reposted by Colin Gerard
We've just had a special weekend email from the Russian troll factory (they usually email us their latest fake videos Monday to Friday, so this is out of character), and they're all about Charlie Kirk. Unusually, they've also posted them on Truth Social, which they don't usually do in my experience.
I'm honestly surprised the Russian troll farms aren't all over the Charlie Kirk shooting, currently it seems they're focused on France, Germany, Armenia, and Moldova. The most recent links they've sent us were all about France, guess they've not received their latest marching orders.
September 13, 2025 at 9:09 AM
We've just had a special weekend email from the Russian troll factory (they usually email us their latest fake videos Monday to Friday, so this is out of character), and they're all about Charlie Kirk. Unusually, they've also posted them on Truth Social, which they don't usually do in my experience.
Reposted by Colin Gerard
The latest Storm-1516/R-FBI crossover disinformation campaign targets Ukraine.
The campaign alleges that Ukraine is using civilians to clear the minefields.
x.com/IvankaNews_/... .
The campaign alleges that Ukraine is using civilians to clear the minefields.
x.com/IvankaNews_/... .
September 5, 2025 at 9:23 PM
The latest Storm-1516/R-FBI crossover disinformation campaign targets Ukraine.
The campaign alleges that Ukraine is using civilians to clear the minefields.
x.com/IvankaNews_/... .
The campaign alleges that Ukraine is using civilians to clear the minefields.
x.com/IvankaNews_/... .