News Gatekeepers: Russia's spread of fake news in Europe surges 850% year-on-year

A "NewsGuard" survey report pointed out that the amount of fake news released by Russia in Europe this year was 850% higher than the same period last year.

Chine Labbe, European editor-in-chief of NewsGuard, a disinformation tracking organization, told AFP that Russia usually steps up its dissemination of disinformation before major elections in European countries. But in France, fraud began just months before the 2027 presidential election.

The investigation report pointed out that European countries support Ukraine's stance in resisting Russian aggression, and European news organizations have become the main targets of fake news. Since the outbreak of the Ukraine-Russia war, Russia has imitated genuine media and fabricated 906 fake news articles. In the first half of this year alone, there were 421 articles, 850% higher than the same period last year.

France was particularly targeted, with 85 fake news articles related to it; among the 15 most commonly counterfeited news organizations, 8 were French media. The report revealed that Russia will impersonate the names and layouts of these mainstream media, and sometimes even create URLs that are similar to genuine websites to make them look fake, making it difficult for ordinary users to distinguish the authenticity. Russia often uses experts' mouths to make up statements in its reports, which not only increases the persuasiveness of fake news, but also weakens public trust in the media. And with the rise of artificial intelligence (AI), Russian groups can mass-produce fake news in simpler and faster ways.