Archive for the ‘Hybrid Warfare’ Category
Russian Meddling: Indictments and Troll Farms
The indictment by the Mueller special counsel investigation into the meddling by Russia into the election cycle last year is just another nail in the coffin on the conclusion that there was no action by the Russians to affect the election cycle in favor of Trump. Though many still have their cognitive dissonance helmets on full, the reality even struck into the White House with Trump tweeting out that there was actually meddling, no collusion, but meddling. So this indictment has shown it’s potential power on the whole case but I wanted to dig a bit deeper into the Troll farm and it’s KGB ties before we ever heard about it as a general populace post 2016.
Point of fact is that in 2015 Adrian Chen wrote about the Troll farm as it was still carrying out attacks on Russia’s other pressing enemy, Ukraine. People seem to have forgotten with all of the talk about the farm in 2016, that the Russian propaganda and PSYOPS machine was actively working for Putin in support of his agenda against Ukraine and it is this fact and how they operated then that should be addressed and shown how they evolved to today’s hybrid warfare tip of the spear.
Back in 2015 the nascent troll farm was active in trying to spin stories about Ukrainian ologarchs and their activities as counter to Russia. One particular story line took place after the assassination of Boris Nemtsov, an opposition candidate to Putin and a progressive in Russia. A reporter for a Russian news service did a story on the Troll Farm and actually managed to gather their documentation including opposition research (internet research) which later would be the name they would take up as IRA right? Anyway, within that cache of documents you have papers with links on things like the Middle East and other areas with ideas on how you could attack them politically with posts like the above on Nemtsov’s being killed not by Putin, but instead by those nasty Ukrainians.
It is informative to look at the postings and the nick names that were being used by the early IRA as opposed to what they have used in 2016 and still use today. In early days they did not really try to insert themselves so well into the public space as being citizens of the areas they were talking about, in fact, most of the names have English connotations and not Russian at all. So by looking at the users and their posts (livejournal for instance) show’s you what it was like in 2015 spinning up and learning. There may have been just as many Twitter accounts but for the most part they were using Livejournal, which makes sense because at the point this was going on, Russia had bought Livejournal…(I left LJ when they did)
No. П / П |
THE CHANGE OF KAZAKABBAEV TATYANA |
CHANGE OF LEBEDYANTSEVA OLGA |
|||
1
2 |
mazurov_89
braille_teeth |
vehofunzi
qitsen |
|||
3 | koka-kola23 | raphahunthig | |||
4 | lipyf837 | panebcaj | |||
5 | vince-crane | tergparriotio | |||
6th | ya_karnavalova | lihohor | |||
7th | nannik-dr | sojaan884 | |||
8 | Rezites | cypetcompbis | |||
9 | konorlaoo04 | destforkowoo | |||
10 | qkempek | nouglysv | |||
eleven | caradoxee5 | petraffilya | |||
12 | ynuka | Backlashealthma | |||
13 | natalex84 | amenem | |||
14 | anna_02051990 | paintbellu | |||
15 | mrokiralex | iugegeizh | |||
16 | annetjohnson | pexirgarnez | |||
17th | rghkride | chicocali | |||
18 | gkohio | pexirub | |||
19 | karber861 | kmfemovmpxxx | |||
20 | innyla92 | lojtautome | |||
21 | cotedo | inkiptiruc | |||
22 | Smurfetka-24 | palecefaz | |||
23 | raikbowee1 | hhlayz | |||
24 | ohvis134 | ningcotedin | |||
25 | demouu1 | olginarkew | |||
26th | nofk452 | renfidebun | |||
27th | alexander7171 | portlandam | |||
28 | vadro | olga_lebedyan | |||
29 | makgxiewua | andriudruz | |||
thirty | mofan926 | unmolarlay | |||
31 | smspudilj | repaw968 | |||
32 | varkhotel | stepalexos | |||
33 | shtots | prasingyy55 | |||
34 | rijbc | steltertheeness | |||
35 | wylwurwolv | spinrarata | |||
36 | workroman | ddesesexla | |||
37 | pheyeroo57 | antaauu4 | |||
38 | tritonst | wihhie917 | |||
39 | milka_e20 | pagkagezmeat | |||
40 | codirips814 | werhellvolkfu | |||
41 | lorislaley | tiopretytcur | |||
42 | eekim81 | aladorzam | |||
43 | oftibar | nyntynuriu | |||
44 | elegmhehov | begtotenlu | |||
45 | aple_at_the_tab | abezhiu | |||
46 | Nikolaabil | oxyitt | |||
47 | hey_son1c | rabrukywiz | |||
48 | firyupa | snowdidsmomuds | |||
49 | asus | paradana | |||
50 | Symatvei | durenhuntpi | |||
51 | xamit251 | sixfeevae | |||
52 | farpodmuu07 | nebozuanrou | |||
53 | oloviit | procomdn | |||
54 | diuu085 | kovikotuss | |||
55 | alenkujl | urigcon211 | |||
56 | rcrims | peosaytranos | |||
57 | snoop83 | borgperwensgod | |||
58 | vynal | rhealaltrades | |||
59 | sportto | nishihatu | |||
60 | danybody | asafasngut | |||
61 | alexmosyan | cophetycoo | |||
62 | poragpalkhe | merzasarsgepf | |||
63 | sergalyev839 | promvogtsigold | |||
64 | vadim_spx | pesina20k | |||
65 | rus-policy | vuhyzowi | |||
66 | wafyy248 | skewerilgraph | |||
67 | katerina2703 | wladmancornnes | |||
68 | dragon_uz | feedpecosleft | |||
69 | Winter-kinder | prosorouqu | |||
70 | Pjobynrutri | frantirigesch | |||
71 | green_margo | cirgadisla | |||
72 | ptirenw | precalacov | |||
73 | pastogross | zlavaq037 | |||
74 | igerenbart | hrilepswia | |||
75 | mskilys | szehdes | |||
76 | pantyyy08 | bestthecalpa | |||
77 | thepicard | lasorpprogso | |||
78 | igtego | classatopos | |||
79 | paqurni | zipkingfilci | |||
80 | emory6townsend | preaphoubowo | |||
81 | aspera76 | geoversive | |||
82 | zymecs | gingsenpirem | |||
83 | 001usa | tes40uvir | |||
84 | ca119idia | judj747 | |||
85 | fadaqpm | throwenelan | |||
86 | pybden | sfouninmire | |||
87 | Protsyon | diotradconpe | |||
88 | phidiwp507 | llanpaclaive | |||
89 | makabu | neytilmigers | |||
90 | osobroim | glyzitneko | |||
91 | yuliya_korshyn | metcentlighrou | |||
92 | Parabellum50 | bentakiffo | |||
93 | policyrus | pqalongese | |||
94 | tuyqer898 | chaicoffskaya | |||
95 | aljin | cenhoufimou | |||
96 | rammathets | siohuntired | |||
97 | overtimorouq | feascoacoca | |||
98 | overtimorouq | prozaet | |||
99 | ntnwoc | inga | |||
100 | stranamasterov | glycmamortga | |||
101 | ktoroj14 | imclasfulte | |||
102 | Yohohoguy | izorylie646 | |||
103 | pbijipsfem | lighwinsbrachig | |||
104 | wyazfunovv | mafomeri | |||
105 | ariol921 | oryanhuazo | |||
106 | mariya-789 | kfuu0 | |||
107 | roavrumper | daytrolchildcha | |||
108 | kyxapka | odassaflot | |||
109 | ryypaulinm | tamred1 | |||
110 | jang033 | paca979 | |||
111 | wwwevgemie | vollatasklu | |||
112 | p01t11 | legahedddis | |||
113 | pohezvitie | othoee111 | |||
114 | zhakim755 | trugleyscorun | |||
115 | Asswalker | ybdocegesch | |||
116 | vvp2014 | rpmuntar | |||
117 | to12scorta | nahezuu91 | |||
118 | Spicemachine | socompdanfi | |||
119 | nastia642 | beadeadsdentfi | |||
120 | nungsorivat | pia986 | |||
121 | homyr657e | pzsg | |||
122 | orlenrenosr | pdachee | |||
123 | kalininkhu | paschig | |||
124 | parydaq070 | plimtintaza | |||
125 | enot_kot | ptimenalhook | |||
126 | abfyr890 | Ladushki2014 | |||
127 | vamiqyy63 | photographereye | |||
128 | evgenyashm | balyk2014 | |||
129 | palfemine | polza1985 | |||
130 | tay-zakulisnay1 | polina_i_liza | |||
131 | radbec | gymbreaker | |||
132 | revivaldude | strelach | |||
133 | cykularj | tolstunovich | |||
134 | ageev013 | demosfen-en | |||
135 | porkimes | Ikehujaik | |||
136 | owwaxde082 | nersis | |||
137 | andrei-kovrin | IvanichKem | |||
138 | pasioda | BVDfan | |||
139 | fooqbal951 | bookworm-war | |||
140 | nugotvapi | nina_zlova | |||
141 | swull786 | ||||
142 | nina_istomina | ||||
143 | gig180 | ||||
144 | raokabea | ||||
145 | synbmulty | ||||
146 | beloham848 | ||||
147 | lissa-marioko | ||||
148 | kater971 | ||||
149 | peflirz | ||||
150 | hikonozauu00 | ||||
151 | hikonozauu00 | ||||
152 | michael_jd | ||||
153 | uglycoyotespb | ||||
154 | urajr | ||||
155 | bobzan | ||||
156 | peulgieness | ||||
157 | scavamerzl | ||||
158 | levyshkinr | ||||
159 | pavetbrer | ||||
160 | ddanii33 | ||||
161 | goodrus | ||||
162 | supersonicwall | ||||
163 | mannaliobrit | ||||
164 | pierii01 | ||||
165 | panbiran | ||||
166 | georgi-grusha | ||||
167 | pashka208 | ||||
168 | vmoffee179 | ||||
169 | etopiterdetka99 | ||||
170 | jenyamelika | ||||
171 | anya_rocket | ||||
172 | snowy_trail | ||||
173 | malkovich_i | ||||
174 | samiyymniy | ||||
175 | chadimi | ||||
176 | kvazarion | ||||
177 | Nestero85 | ||||
178 | nika_anisina | ||||
179 | savoiyar | ||||
180 | oksadoxa | ||||
181 | mercymt |
Most of these you have to look up with the Wayback Machine and you will notice that a lot of them were one off posts and that was it. Just sowing the ground for the infowar and then linking that post around. For Ukraine and anyone who has been paying attention, the PSYOPS and Hybrid War has been ongoing for many years so this is nothing new. For the US, well, the general populace that is, they hadn’t a clue I guess but I wanted to get across to you that what they pulled off in the US wasn’t new, it was just the next evolution of what they have been doing all along elsewhere. It was the magic of ubiquitous social media and a really polarized political landscape that made it work so well in 2016.
So with this indictment we can peek further under the hood of the hybrid information war against the US election process. It seems that this all kind of was being at least thought about in 2013 when Putin was pissed off with Clinton about his own elections and some of what later came out in the cables that were dumped by Wikileaks. By 2014 the notion of hybrid warfare had been put out by the Gerasimov and Russia was starting to plan. The creation of the Troll Farm I personally think was a part of the Gerasimov doctrine’s modus operandi that the SVR/GRU and Putin decided to create for this purpose and furthermore that the first fledgling attacks were the prelude to what would come in 2016. Certainly by 2015 they were spinning up and already had assets in place in the US gathering intel and creating the baselines for the attacks.
Truly this was a hybrid form of warfare using human assets and technical ones to carry off the plan. This wasn’t just some one off fly by night operation, they invested a lot of time and money getting assets in country (US) to collect data and to add to the planning stages. They then went as far to hire out servers in the US and create VPN’s to make it look as though their troll armies were actually here in the states. Add to this the fact that they also used carding sites to create users and bank accounts to fund the operations also speaks to the sophistication of the operation.
This wasn’t dedushka’s propaganda operation!
So what does all this mean other than it is an entertaining diversion for those who want to go down the rabbit hole OSINT wise? Well, it shows that the Russian plan was larger than one might have thought, more effective than some still think, and was but one component of a larger operation. That last bit is key for me to get across to you all. Of late I have been seeing reports online since the indictments came out that said the campaign really did not affect the election and this is poppycock. This was just a part of the larger whole and to take this module of the whole plan and separate it out to say nothing happened, is idiotic.
Though the President and the Russian operations still ongoing would like you to believe this is the case, it is a falsehood. In tandem with the hacking and the leaks, the Russians most definitely affected the voting by the populace. In fact, when information starts to come out about how Analytica data targeting very specific groups and regions comes to light you will see just how much the whole is the sum of the parts and the synergy was leveraged. This was no simple hack and dump of data, there were psychologists and social scientists involved as well as technicians and hackers.
This indictment just sets the stage for more to come my friends… And seeing Donny squirm and rage has been amusing.
More will come. For now though, do read the aricle and look at all the docs in the Google docs dump there.
Dos va donya
K.
UPDATE: I am going through the metadata of the files from the Google drive and I have found a document that comes from a .mil address (function.mil.ru) and this document (Nightly TK of 06.01) gives direction on post keywords and writing direction for content.
It was created 1/26/2015 by “user”
You can now see a military connection to the Troll farm.