Campaign of deception
Highlights of the Justice Department’s indictment:
Disinformation campaign began in April 2014 and continued through — and after — the presidential election in November 2016.
The campaign was run by the Internet Research Agency of St. Petersburg, Russia, employing more than 80 people on graphic, search-engine optimization, data analysis, finance and information technology. The budget exceeded $1.25 million a month by September 2016. 13 individuals and three companies charged. Yevgeniy Prigozhin was accused of using companies he controlled, including Concord Management and Consulting and Concord Catering, to finance the operation. He has been called “Putin’s chef” because his restaurants host dinners between Vladimir Putin and foreign dignitaries. The Russians were advised by an unsuspecting activist “that they should focus their activities on ‘purple states like Colorado, Virginia and Florida.’ ”
Russians used the stolen identities of Americans to post misinformation on YouTube, Facebook, Instagram and Twitter, drawing hundreds of thousands of followers to their fake accounts. Those included accounts called Secured Borders and United Muslims for America. One account, called Tennessee GOP, attracted more than 100,000 followers. Prosecutors say PayPal was used to transfer money for general expenses as well as to buy Facebook ads. Prosecutors say the accounts were opened using fake identities to help bypass PayPal’s security measures.
Russian misinformation specialists were instructed to “use any opportunity to criticize Hillary and the rest (except Sanders and Trump — we support them).” Many ads bought by the Russians on social media were intended to depress minority votes. “Hillary Clinton doesn’t deserve the black vote,” said one ad posted on May 24, 2016. On Nov. 3, 2016,
days before the election, the Russians bought an ad on their Blacktivist account that said: “Choose peace and vote for Jill Stein. Trust me, it’s not a wasted vote.”
The Russians promoted campaign rallies, including after the election on Nov. 12 in New York City, to both support and oppose Trump. At an August 2016 rally in West Palm Beach, Fla., the Russians paid to build a cage on a flatbed truck and to hire someone to portray Hillary Clinton in a prison uniform.
There was no allegation that Americans were “knowing participants.”