Russia has targeted the Canadian military in its disinformation campaign about the war in Ukraine, sharing fake photos of soldiers involved in battles, the Security Communications Authority (CSE) said.
In a series of tweets published on Wednesday, the government agency said the Kremlin was actively supporting efforts to promote pro-Russian non-state voices on social media, “affecting millions of viewers.”
As part of this tactic, CSE said, Russia is spreading “false stories” about Canada’s involvement in the conflict through controlled media designed to look legitimate.
“This included a false account of the presence of Canadian forces in the Donbass region, which was in line with the news of Canadian forces arriving in Ukraine to secure the Canadian embassy in Kyiv,” the tweet said.
“These publications were intended to include forged images of members of the Canadian frontline forces and false allegations about Canadian war crimes forces.
CSE said recent observations were taken from its classified reporting on the issue. The agency has a mandate to inform the government of the activities of foreign entities that threaten Canada or its allies, including misinformation.
Anti-Semitic conspiracy theories, anti-LGBTQ + material, anti-immigrant commentary, anti-globalization sentiment and QAnon content are also being circulated on Kremlin communication platforms in an attempt to “manipulate” the global public, the agency said.
National Defense Minister Anita Anand was asked if the latest CSE report raises the level of threat to military members stationed in Europe.
“The level of threat, of course, is one that we are constantly monitoring and will continue to do so. At the moment, we are convinced that this is a mission that must be undertaken in the interest of humanitarian aid, in the interest of helping our Polish allies and in the interest of the NATO alliance, which is written because refugees are fleeing Ukraine. ” Anand said after the latest announcement to send up to 150 members of the Canadian Armed Forces to Poland to manage the resettlement efforts.
Canada currently has approximately 1,375 members stationed in Eastern and Central Europe through Operation REASSURENCE. The troops, which were stationed in Ukraine as part of a military training mission, were withdrawn before the Russian invasion.
The Liberals have spent $ 10 million over five years in their spring budget to develop and implement nationwide measures to combat misinformation and protect democracy in Canada.
CSE and other Canadian cybersecurity agencies have issued a series of warnings about Russian disinformation tactics that led to and after its February 24 invasion of Ukraine.
Following Russia’s brazen and unjustified invasion of Ukraine, CSE continues to monitor a number of Russian-backed #disinformation campaigns online.
Continue reading about observations from our classified reports on this issue. ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/k1cOgHRzJm
– CSE @ (@cse_cst) April 13, 2022
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