Anti-Zelenskyy fake videos meant to ‘sow distrust’ in democracy, investigator says

Bellingcat Director of Research and Training Giancarlo Fiorella discusses a wave of videos that appear to be targeting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

Fake videos masquerading as reports from legitimate news organizations are spreading online as part of a Russian disinformation campaign targeting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, according to an investigator with the independent research collective Bellingcat.

The videos have been circulating primarily on X and Telegram following the release of an open letter involving Zelenskyy.

“What we’re seeing shared online is a wave of videos that appear to be from legitimate news organizations, but are not,” said Giancarlo Fiorella, a director at Bellingcat, in an interview with CTV News Channel Tuesday. “These videos bear the logos of established news outlets, but they contain false information.”

Fiorella said the videos make a variety of claims, but all appear aimed at undermining Zelenskyy.

Bellingcat was among the organizations impersonated by the campaign, he said.

“We were one of the media organizations whose logo and whose name was used … to push a completely false claim,” Fiorella said. “Unfortunately, this is far from the first time that Bellingcat’s name has been used as part of a disinformation campaign like this one.”

Researchers have linked the activity to a disinformation operation known as Matryoshka, which has been tracked for several years.

According to Fiorella, the campaign follows a recognizable pattern. Videos often appear first on Russian-language Telegram channels before English-language versions are distributed on X.

He said the videos tend to use a vertical format, claim to originate from reputable media organizations and promote narratives favourable to Russian interests.

The broader goal of such campaigns is not simply to spread false information.

“The point of any cyber warfare operation, of any disinformation campaign like this one, is to sow distrust to undermine the public’s belief and trust in democratic governance and democracy, in general,” Fiorella said. “They’re meant to cause confusion, to create strife internally and the target country, and to basically tear apart the fabric of society.”

Fiorella said these efforts can be particularly valuable during wartime because they contribute to discord and disunity within a target country.

“If you are fighting a war, those are all things that you want your opponent to be suffering from,” he said. “From discord, from disunity, from chaos.”

He said the latest wave of content appears aimed at undermining Zelenskyy and support for Ukraine.

Matryoshka’s activities have extended beyond Ukraine, Fiorella said.

He pointed to recent examples in Hungary and Armenia, where researchers reported content linked to the operation ahead of elections.

Fiorella said reporting surrounding Armenia’s recent parliamentary election suggested Matryoshka was pushing narratives intended to influence public opinion and support political figures viewed as more favourable to Russian President Vladimir Putin.