joe bodnar @joeabodnar.bsky.social · 01/10/2026There's been a remarkable decline in engagement on X posts from Iranian diplomats since early April. I guess the Legos and memes got stale. 030
joe bodnar @joeabodnar.bsky.social · 14/09/2026Oh, come on. www.propublica.org/article/dona...propublica.orgDonald Trump Jr.’s Wedding Bankrolled by Putin-Linked Russian OligarchThe oligarch, Umar Kremlev, spent hundreds of thousands on expenses like renting out a private island. He appears to have met Trump Jr. only recently, but he attended the intimate wedding with a large... 010
joe bodnar @joeabodnar.bsky.social · 11/09/2026I've only reviewed the IO aspects of this, but it's clear Anthropic is setting a new standard for threat intelligence reporting. As troubling as the details are, it's so useful to have them public. www.anthropic.com/threat-intel...anthropic.comCountering misuse of AI: September 2026 / AnthropicCase studies from threat actors disrupted between December 2025 and August 2026 across seven areas of harm, from cyber operations to biological misuse. 022
joe bodnar @joeabodnar.bsky.social · 08/09/2026I like using one password manager to get into another password manager so I can sign in and then dual authenticate on a separate device. 010
joe bodnar @joeabodnar.bsky.social · 04/09/2026My colleague wrote a really impressive piece on a very unimpressive Russian information operation targeting Germany's elections. My favorite stat: Of the 269 posts collected targeting the upcoming elections in Germany, only seven were in German. www.isdglobal.org/digital-disp...isdglobal.orgInvestigation | An old dog with no new tricks: Matryoshka targets regional elections in Germany - Institute for Strategic DialogueISD finds Matryoshka targets Germany’s 2026 elections, exposing weaknesses that could aid detection in future elections. 044
joe bodnar @joeabodnar.bsky.social · 02/09/2026Amazing that this renewed interested in foreign disinfo is being driven by overhyped reports about Chinese interference in data center debates. The X update mirrored OpenAI's report, which categorized the Chinese operation (Spamo) as Category One on the breakout scale. That's the lowest category. 131
joe bodnar @joeabodnar.bsky.social · 30/08/2026We should just call them information operations, not AI-enabled IOs. At this point, it's unusual to see an IO that doesn't use AI. Meta: "Every one of the CIB networks we disrupted and shared in this report incorporated some form of generative AI." transparency.meta.com/sr/H2-2026-a...transparency.meta.com 020
joe bodnar @joeabodnar.bsky.social · 20/08/2026Hear me out: what if we made a framework or a toolkit. That would probably solve it. 000
joe bodnar @joeabodnar.bsky.social · 13/08/2026For the past couple weeks, I've been red teaming an LLM with the help of an LLM. It's such a confusing way to work. When is 2021 coming back? 120
joe bodnar @joeabodnar.bsky.social · 07/08/2026I'm on a quiet crusade to right size state-backed information operations. There's so much room to make fun of these guys. 120
joe bodnar @joeabodnar.bsky.social · 10/07/2026I have yet to see compelling evidence that any foreign actor is meaningfully attempting to manipulate US debates around AI data centers. There are some examples of posts and articles—but nothing sustained or impactful. What am I missing? 110
Reposted by joe bodnarJason Koebler @jasonkoebler.bsky.social · 15/06/2026New: Researchers have quantified how easy AI search is to manipulate. Just 13 words buried in a random Reddit comment can poison AI search results. They suggest this is not easy to stop: "The way you can attack these systems is so much dumber than you think it is" www.404media.co/it-is-trivia...404media.coIt Is Trivially Easy to Use Reddit to Manipulate AI Search, Research Suggests"We show that a tiny snippet—just 13 words—of retrieved text on a UGC website like Reddit, Wikipedia, Quora, or Facebook can change AI agents to output spam / scam content pretty consistently." 5029761170
joe bodnar @joeabodnar.bsky.social · 12/06/2026"Man posted support for Ukraine days before leaving trash in park" vibes from Overload. 011
joe bodnar @joeabodnar.bsky.social · 11/06/2026Russian IOs are impersonating soccer players. The World Cup has kicked off! 131
joe bodnar @joeabodnar.bsky.social · 11/06/2026Bummed by this OpenAI report. It's Spamouflage. It's not new and it's not impactful. If I was cynical, which I'm not, I'd say this report was just meant to stir up anti-China sentiment. openai.com/index/prc-li...openai.comPRC-linked influence operations are targeting AI debates in the USA new report from OpenAI details PRC-linked influence operations using AI to target U.S. tech debates, data center narratives, tariffs, and false claims about ChatGPT. 233
joe bodnar @joeabodnar.bsky.social · 09/06/2026Wonder if this says anything about the ops production timeline. I remember its Kirk narrative coming about 2 months after that incident, too. 020
joe bodnar @joeabodnar.bsky.social · 31/05/2026Reuters reported that Russia plans "to transport tens of thousands of Russian-Armenians to sway the vote." Here's a screenshot of Mika Badalyan, a pro-Russia blogger with links to Ilhan Shor, offering to pay for that transportation. www.reuters.com/world/import... 152
joe bodnar @joeabodnar.bsky.social · 22/05/2026Great piece on Russian IOs targeting Armenia. We're about to publish an in-depth look at these ops and others. But I have to say, @antibot4navalny.bsky.social Matryoshka monitoring is absurd. The amount of energy and expertise needed to find all those posts is wild www.euronews.com/my-europe/20...euronews.comA large scale disinformation campaign is targeting Armenia's electionFor several months, Armenia has been the target of a wide-ranging Russian disinformation campaign ahead of its parliamentary elections in early June. Researchers say the operation is among the most ex... 100
joe bodnar @joeabodnar.bsky.social · 21/05/2026My first quote in the New York Times is just me being shocked about something I had no idea was happening. I've done a lot of Overload watching but hearing that it had hijacked accounts for well-known individuals was new--and really concerning. www.nytimes.com/2026/05/21/b...nytimes.comBluesky Says Kremlin Is Hacking Its Platform to Spread Propaganda 010
joe bodnar @joeabodnar.bsky.social · 21/05/2026You have to pay attention. Russian disinformation can be very subtle. 000
joe bodnar @joeabodnar.bsky.social · 19/05/2026Shout out to @indicator.media for its guide on Skills in Chrome. I customized a prompt and made this great Obsidian network map in like 5 minutes. 001
joe bodnar @joeabodnar.bsky.social · 11/05/2026It's nice of TikTok to give us something on the influence operations it sees. But this is as close to nothing as possible. 020
joe bodnar @joeabodnar.bsky.social · 28/04/2026Stoked to see the New York Times cite our research! www.nytimes.com/interactive/...nytimes.comIran’s Meme War Against Trump Ushers In a Future of ‘Slopaganda’The country’s propaganda apparatus has harnessed artificial intelligence tools to reach a global online audience primed for irony, irreverence and trolling. 000
Reposted by joe bodnarDavid Gilbert @davidgilbert.bsky.social · 26/04/2026NEW Conspiracies claiming the attack at the White House Correspondents dinner on Saturday night was STAGED were everywhere online within minutes of the incident happening Like Butler, most of it is coming from the left.... www.wired.com/story/staged...wired.com‘STAGED’: Conspiracy Theories Are Everywhere Following White House Correspondents' Dinner ShootingThe word “staged” exploded on social media following the attack, as both right and left-wing influencers and anonymous accounts spread unfounded conspiracy theories. 398927
Reposted by joe bodnarInstitute for Strategic Dialogue @isdglobal.bsky.social · 24/04/2026Iranian embassies and officials on X have shifted from formal diplomatic messaging towards viral “shitposting,” using absurdity, humor and provocation to capture attention. New ISD analysis highlights the significant impact of this shift 👉 www.isdglobal.org/digital-disp...isdglobal.orgIran's diplomats launch a meme war - Institute for Strategic DialogueIranian officials are using provocative, ironic content to go viral, driving massive engagement and reshaping state messaging during the war. 1125
joe bodnar @joeabodnar.bsky.social · 23/04/2026Put all the stats on Iranian embassies’ shitposting campaigns into one place. Since the war, embassy accounts have increased their volume of posts by 4X, likes by 30X, shares by 16X, and views by 14X. We're talking 900,000 views in 50 days. They found the formula www.isdglobal.org/digital-disp...isdglobal.orgIran's diplomats launch a meme war - Institute for Strategic DialogueIranian officials are using provocative, ironic content to go viral, driving massive engagement and reshaping state messaging during the war. 020
joe bodnar @joeabodnar.bsky.social · 22/04/2026Explosive Media seeming a little desperate of late. LEGO videos are only novel for so long. 000
joe bodnar @joeabodnar.bsky.social · 20/04/2026Iranian diplomats using X to crowdsource soldiers seems bad? Also, spotted some unimpressive CIB around this effort, apparently tied to the Ahlulbait Indonesia. 000
joe bodnar @joeabodnar.bsky.social · 17/04/2026The Economist cited our findings. On an unrelated note, I'll be retiring now. www.economist.com/culture/2026...economist.comIn the AI propaganda war, Iran is winningA joyless theocracy produces wittier videos than the Trump administration 020
joe bodnar @joeabodnar.bsky.social · 17/04/2026I'm going to continue live tweeting my spreadsheets. Collectively, Iranian diplomats on X have received 30 times more likes since the war began than during the same period before it. It jumped from 660K likes to 21M likes. Stunning numbers. 020
joe bodnar @joeabodnar.bsky.social · 17/04/2026Iran’s embassy in South Africa gained more views on X in the first 49 days of the war than 150 diplomatic accounts did in the 49 days before the war. A masterclass in shitposting (and potential bot use). 062
joe bodnar @joeabodnar.bsky.social · 17/04/2026Something big funky going on with Iranian embassy posts. Iran's embassy in Tajikistan posted an AI video of Jesus knocking Trump's head off. It gained 13 million views in a single minute. 110
joe bodnar @joeabodnar.bsky.social · 16/04/2026Messed around and found a couple pro-Iran networks on X that gained more than a billion (with a B) views in a month. They were boosted by X's For You feed and alerts. Iranian and Russian diplomats reshared them. These are great examples of small networks gaming X. www.isdglobal.org/digital-disp...isdglobal.orgHow pro-Iran networks gained a billion views on war propaganda - Institute for Strategic DialogueTwo pro-Iran X networks gained over a billion views via coordinated misleading content and Premium verification under algorithmic amplification. 041
joe bodnar @joeabodnar.bsky.social · 15/04/2026Iranian diplomats on X are going insane and putting up insane numbers. It's a total reversal of what they were doing pre-war. Here's the numbers for 125 embassy / diplomatic accounts: 46 days before the war: ~ 500K likes on 9K posts 46 days since the war: ~ 18M likes on 39K posts 052
joe bodnar @joeabodnar.bsky.social · 15/04/2026I usually don't like to brag, but I can spend full days pulling data, adjusting the query, and pulling it again. That's probably my most valuable skill. 010
Reposted by joe bodnarAxios @axios.com · 12/04/2026BREAKING: Orbán defeated in Hungary after 16 years in poweraxios.comEarthquake in Hungary: Orbán defeated after 16 years in powerIt's a stunning rebuke to one of the Western world's most entrenched populist leaders. 921104288
joe bodnar @joeabodnar.bsky.social · 11/04/2026I'm a huge fan of PBS. It's so cool to see our research, which we'll published a piece on in the next couple days, highlighted in this piece. www.pbs.org/newshour/nat...pbs.orgTripped up by misinformation? Here's a refresher on identifying AIHere are some tips for distinguishing AI-generated content from reality in an online world where that continues to get harder. 010
joe bodnar @joeabodnar.bsky.social · 10/04/2026Spoke to AFP about how Iran has crafted a wartime propaganda strategy tailored for the age of AI slop. It's amazing how shitposting (and bad US policy) has helped recast one of the world’s most repressive regimes as a witty underdog. www.france24.com/en/live-news...france24.comLego-style memes troll Trump after fragile US-Iran truceShortly after news of a US-Iran ceasefire, an Iranian group released a new Lego-style video lampooning President Donald Trump and declaring "Iran won," the latest in a wave of war-themed AI-generated… 000
joe bodnar @joeabodnar.bsky.social · 09/04/2026The numbers in my first post were for the past week. Since the start of the war, Iranian diplomats on X have had 193 posts with 1M+ views. State media has had 14. Wolf warriors are looking very quaint these days. 030
joe bodnar @joeabodnar.bsky.social · 09/04/2026Very cool minute-by-minute breakdown of how Iran spread a claim that it shot down an F-18. www.nytimes.com/interactive/...nytimes.comHow Iran’s Information War Machine Operates OnlineIn just 69 minutes, Iran took advantage of a global network of accounts and media channels to spread its narrative around the world. 052
joe bodnar @joeabodnar.bsky.social · 09/04/20261516 is going pretty hard at the Hungarian election. By my count, its volume of campaigns targeting Hungary is roughly on par with the number it carried out ahead of the 2024 US presidential election. 121
joe bodnar @joeabodnar.bsky.social · 09/04/2026Iranian diplomats are shit posting their way to massive engagement numbers. The Iranian embassy accounts we track on X have nearly 50 distinct posts with over a million views. Iranian state media accounts have hit that number just four times. 043
Reposted by joe bodnarDavid Gilbert @davidgilbert.bsky.social · 09/04/2026SCOOP The Iranian group producing the Trump LEGO videos have a secret weapon.....Americans who send them tips and ideas to make their content better www.wired.com/story/inside...wired.comInside the Pro-Iran Meme Machine Trolling Trump With AI Lego CartoonsSince the beginning of the Iran war, the group Explosive Media has released over a dozen viral videos mocking Trump and the US. 217145
joe bodnar @joeabodnar.bsky.social · 07/04/2026Russia, if you're listening, LEGO videos are big right now, not whatever this animation is. 010
joe bodnar @joeabodnar.bsky.social · 02/04/2026Someone is paying YouTube accounts to post AI-generated videos of Iranian women telling people to visit Iran. There are so many of these. 100
joe bodnar @joeabodnar.bsky.social · 02/04/2026Spoke to the Observer about the pro-Iran content we're seeing spread across platforms. This is the first time I've worked the word "vibes" into an interview. I'm officially hip and young. observer.co.uk/news/interna...observer.co.uk‘Operation Epstein Fury’: Iran employs AI propaganda as w...The Iranian regime purports to be avenging the financier’s victims in its latest skirmish with the US, but the use of artificial intelligence further muddies the water between fact and fiction 000