November 27, 2024 at 01:45PM
The Social Design Agency (SDA) is executing “Operation Undercut,” a campaign aimed at undermining support for Ukraine and influencing the US, Ukraine, and Europe regarding various geopolitical issues. Utilizing AI-generated videos and misinformation, it seeks to destabilize Western alliances while drawing attention to perceived inefficacies in Ukrainian leadership.
### Meeting Takeaways on “Operation Undercut”
1. **Campaign Overview**:
– The Social Design Agency (SDA), recently implicated in the “Doppelgänger” malign influence campaign, is running a new initiative called “Operation Undercut.”
– This campaign aims to undermine support for Ukraine amidst its ongoing war with Russia and extends to other global issues, including the Middle East conflict and EU internal politics.
2. **Objectives**:
– The primary goal is to weaken Western support for Ukraine, consequently affecting military aid.
– Additionally, the campaign seeks to discredit Ukraine’s leadership, portraying it as ineffective and corrupt.
3. **Target Audiences**:
– Operation Undercut specifically targets audiences in the US, Ukraine, and Europe to amplify anti-Ukraine sentiment.
4. **Methods and Tactics**:
– The campaign utilizes AI-enhanced videos disseminated via social media platforms like X, alongside content that mimics legitimate media sources.
– Videos are produced in multiple languages (English, Russian, German) and often seem relevant to current events and political figures.
– Misleading content includes deepfakes and narratives sourced from credible outlets, suggesting a rise in support for Russia.
5. **Engagement and Impact**:
– Current audience engagement with the content appears limited, though the US government is monitoring and attempting to mitigate such disinformation efforts.
– Recent US Department of Justice actions include seizing internet domains linked to previous campaigns, highlighting the seriousness of these operations.
6. **Differentiation from Doppelgänger**:
– While both campaigns share similar objectives, they differ in tactics.
– Operation Undercut employs social media for direct content distribution, unlike Doppelgänger, which relies on inauthentic websites and automated promotion.
7. **Attribution**:
– Clément Briens from Recorded Future’s Insikt Group confirms the SDA’s involvement in Operation Undercut based on detected similarities in content and methods linked to previous operations.
### Action Items:
– Continually monitor and report on the evolution of Operation Undercut and its impact on public sentiment regarding Ukraine.
– Strengthen awareness and mitigation strategies against disinformation campaigns targeting Western alliances and elections.