Pravda network infects language models with pro-Kremlin disinformation
A Russian disinformation campaign has been flooding the web with false claims and propaganda in order to impact the output of major AI chatbots and ultimately manipulate public opinion, according to disinformation researchers. What happened Active since April 2022, Moscow-based Pravda network (also known as "Portal Kombat") has been aggregating content from Russian state media, pro-Kremlin influencers, and government agencies and officials through a broad set of 150+ seemingly independent domains across 49 countries in order to manipulate western search engines and web crawlers. Over 3.6 million articles were published this way in 2024, which are now being regurgitated by high-profile AI chatbots, i ncluding ChatGPT-4o, Google's Gemini , and xAI's Grok . These systems repeated 15 false narratives spread by Pravda 33 percent of the time during testing, including provably debunked claims about US bioweapons labs in Ukraine. F ugitive propagandist John Mark Dougan n oted that : “By pushing these Russian narratives... we can actually change worldwide AI”. Why it happened Pravda's activities appear to be part of a broader effort to manipulate public opinion across the world in favour of the Kremlin, and exploits AI training mechanisms through a strategy called "LLM grooming". Pravda has been active since April 2022, when Russia invaded Ukraine. What it means The findings reveal vulnerabilities in AI development pipelines, particularly the reliance on easily manipulated web crawls for training data. It also demonstrates how geopolitical conflicts increasingly play out in information infrastructures, with disinformation campaigns evolving to exploit algorithmic weaknesses rather than just human psychology.
- Date it happened
- 2022-01-01
- Organisation involved
- Government of Russia
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