Hollywood stars unwittingly ensnared in pro-Russian propaganda campaign

Pro-Russian propaganda campaigns are not anything new, however this is the primary one we have heard of that recruited Hollywood stars inclusive of Elijah Wood with out their knowledge. The actors did no longer understand that their clips, created on platforms like Cameo, could be edited to falsely depict Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky as a drug addict.

Microsoft reviews that on account that July 2023, Russia-aligned actors had been the usage of structures which include Cameo, wherein famous (and no longer so well-known) people document personalized messages consisting of birthday needs for human beings. In those times, the services had been applied for propaganda purposes.

The campaign involved asking the celebs to ship a message to someone called "Vladimir," pleading with him to seek assist for substance abuse.

The motion pictures had been edited to include emojis, hyperlinks, and overlays to make them appear as if they came without delay from the celebrities' personal social media money owed. The doctored clips have been then shared across Russian social media, an try and push Russia's long-claimed fake narrative that Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky struggles with substance abuse.

Some of the videos characteristic excessive-profile celebs. Microsoft Threat Analysis Center says it has discovered seven of those on account that late July 2023, providing Elijah Wood (Lord of the Rings), Dean Norris (Breaking Bad), John McGinley from Scrubs, musician Shavo Odadjian, Kate Flannery (The Office), and Priscilla Presley.

Russian country-owned media outlet RIA Novosti published a story in August after McGinley's video began gaining traction, portraying the clip as proper. "Over the beyond 12 months, booze and pills have grow to be your nice buddies, I understand. The most essential piece of recommendation I can provide you with in this situation is that the handiest manner out is kindness," the actor said, unaware who "Vladimir" was.

The videos have been doctored to increase their legitimacy by means of adding the Ukrainian flag and tagging Zelensky's Instagram account, all of which made the speakers look like they were addressing Ukraine's president.

Russia has been embracing the realm of virtual propaganda since it invaded Ukraine nearly years ago. Disinformation-spreading Russian bot farms are constantly being seized by means of Ukrainian government, and we've even seen seasoned-Russian sentiment seem in games together with Roblox, Minecraft, World of Tanks, World of Warships, Fly Corp, Armored Warfare, and War Thunder.