Fact check: Misleading graph about alleged Russian bot activity
Did attacks on Russian data centers reduce bot activity around Germany's AfD? A viral graph claims they did. But it contains significant inconsistencies and provides no evidence to support the claim.
A graph claiming a decline in online activity related to AfD (Alternative for Germany) after Russian drone attacks on Yandex data centers has been deemed misleading by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's office. The Ukrainian government clarified that Zelenskyy was referring to an "atmosphere" of reduced hate, division, and provocations, not actual reduced bot activity.
Despite this clarification, the graph was shared widely, including by a Czech Member of the European Parliament, potentially due to its visually striking decline. However, experts like Josef Holnburger, managing director of the Center for Monitoring, Analysis and Strategy (CeMAS), argue that there is currently no evidence to support a decline in Russian disinformation activities caused by the Yandex attacks.
They emphasize that Cloudflare's data, often cited as evidence of decreased bot activity, actually refers to a decline in non-human automated traffic, not the specific bot activity in question. The graph's scaling issues, lack of a known data source, and inclusion of future dates all contribute to its misleading nature. AI involvement cannot be ruled out due to these inaccuracies.
Written by urgent.news from DW English (Top Stories)'s reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
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