Meta has published a security report, which talks about pro-Russian networks operating in favor of the Georgian Dream. The company claims that members of the Inauthentic and Coordinated Network (CIB) were operating from Russia and were discrediting the participants of anti-Russian law protests in Georgia.

What is an Inauthentic and Coordinated Network?

As Meta explains, inauthentic and coordinated networking involves a coordinated effort to manipulate a particular opinion in public debate. Those involved in the process use fake accounts to mislead others.

Meta says that when they investigate operations like this, they focus on behavior, not content — that is, it doesn’t matter who is behind the processes, what content is being published, whether it’s foreign or local. The main thing is that they artificially, manipulatively, pre-agreed and together try to spread a particular opinion.

What Is the Role of Russia in These Processes?

According to Meta data, from 2017 until today, Russia is the leader, and the majority of inauthentic and coordinated networks they have removed are related to this country. The organization explains that Russia’s past operations have had significantly different narratives — that of manipulating culture wars, social issues and business interests in their target countries.

And after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022, they were largely focused on undermining Ukraine, both inside and outside the country. However, some networks also focus on other neighboring countries of Russia, such as Georgia, Moldova and others. The narrative was directed at the fact that the support of the Ukrainian government against Russia is harmful to both Ukraine and its allies.

How Was This Network Connected to Georgia?

Inauthentic and coordinated networks that tried to spread different opinions in Georgia were repeatedly deleted by Meta in previous years. They were connected with Georgian Dream, Georgian March, Koka Kandiashvili and other actors. And this year, the social media giant deleted the network, which included 76 Facebook accounts, 30 Facebook pages and 11 Instagram accounts. Originating in Russia, the network spent about $77,000 on advertising and focused on Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan.

The organization explains that this particular network operated by creating fictitious news websites with different branding tailored to the target country. They had accounts on YouTube, Telegram and TikTok to appear more legitimate and credible.

As a rule, similar networks respond to important processes in the country and try to manipulate opinion on sensitive issues. This time, their goal was to discredit the large-scale protests against the Russian law and support the ruling team.

“At the time of this writing, these fictitious websites continue to operate and publish “breaking news” about Georgian politics in Armenian, Azerbaijani and Russian languages. About Georgia, they wrote about the protest against the “Foreign Agents” law — they criticized the participants of the rally and supported the ruling party, the Georgian Dream,” the report reads.

According to them, the people behind the network on Meta apps created fake accounts to drive people to websites and recruited people from Armenia to produce video content for TikTok, YouTube and Meta, which was distributed by one of the network’s members, Agora Expert Club.

Meta also says that a Russian company is behind these processes.

“Although the people behind the CIB network tried to hide their identity and coordination, our investigation revealed links to individuals associated with a Moscow-registered marketing firm called IMA Digital,” the statement said.

According to the company, this coordinated and inauthentic operation was discovered in cooperation with the Georgian NGO, ISFED, and with the help of their investigation.