Russia hijacked hundreds of Bluesky accounts



Russia hijacked hundreds of Bluesky accounts as part of a disinformation campaign aimed at weakening Western support for Ukraine.

The operation targeted journalists, professors, artists, and filmmakers whose accounts were then used to circulate fabricated videos and fake news reports.

Researchers at Clemson University linked the campaign to the Moscow-based Social Design Agency and a wider Kremlin operation called “Matryoshka,” named after Russian nesting dolls.

Unlike previous Russian propaganda relying on fake accounts and bots, this campaign infiltrated real user profiles.

Bluesky removed thousands of posts since April. One Colorado professor discovered a fake video on his account posing as a news report accusing France of weakening its police force by backing Ukraine.

The Matryoshka operation produces fake reports resembling established news organizations like Reuters and France 24.

Hacking