OpenAI Disrupts Two AI-Enabled 'False Front' Influence Operations That Included Seven Fake Journalists

OpenAI recently banned two influence operations utilizing its AI models to spread geopolitical propaganda. One of the operations, originating from Iran, employed seven fabricated journalist personas to pitch long-form articles to small and medium online outlets worldwide. Alongside these articles, the operation generated numerous social media comments, predominantly concerning the US-Iran conflict.

The Iranian operation also created false leaked documents and audio scripts, some of which were disseminated online. Another operation, based in Russia, utilized unwitting individuals in Latin America to establish a fake think tank. To propagate their falsified narratives, both operations made significant use of AI to draft internal reports, with the Russian operation doing so more extensively.

In the Iranian case, the actors employed deceptive strategies such as creating fake email addresses to impersonate legitimate entities, like a regional education directorate in Lima, Peru. They convinced schools to host events related to the Ukraine-U.S. war and published fabricated stories about these events in media outlets across Peru, Poland, and Hungary.

Similarly, the Russian operation impersonated a school in Ecuador to organize a ceremony pledging allegiance to the country's president and former Blackwater head. Open-source investigations found that the media coverage mirrored the false claims made by the operators. OpenAI reports that nearly 100 articles were published or syndicated under the Iranian operation's bylines in roughly a dozen online outlets, mostly focused on international affairs and Middle East matters.

The earliest article was published in July 2025, while the latest appeared in October 2026, with the frequency of reports rising after the US-Iran war escalated.