Russian propaganda group Storm-1516 is using identities of real journalists to target Moldova, Armenia, and France

The Russian propaganda group Storm-1516, known for disseminating fake news online, has begun impersonating real journalists by publishing articles under their names on fabricated news sites. Disinformation analysts at the Gnida Project recently uncovered at least four such instances. The fake publications have targeted Moldova, France, Armenia, and, most recently, Germany.

As part of a campaign targeting Moldovan President Maia Sandu, an article appeared on the fake website “The EU Insider” (insider.eu.com), dated May 22 and attributed to Radu Dumitrescu — a legitimate journalist with the English-language Romanian outlet Romania Insider (romania-insider.com). The article falsely claimed that the mayor of Moldova’s capital, Chișinău, had accused Sandu of embezzling funds allocated by USAID.

Storm-1516 then turned to France and Armenia, using the names of five journalists from the French outlet Public (public.fr), including Romain Fiaschetti. A June 25 article, published on the fake site “Courrier France 24” (courrierfrance24.fr), claimed that the French state-owned company Orano was sending nuclear waste to Armenia and making donations to a fund allegedly tied to Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan. Another article, dated July 1 and posted on the fake site “Enquête du Jour” (enquetedujour.fr), alleged that a surgeon “linked to rumors about Brigitte Macron's transgender identity” was found dead in Paris.

On July 4, a fake “Canadian” site called “Toronto Journal” (torontojournal.ca) published an article claiming that German Chancellor Friedrich Merz had illegally killed a family of polar bears during a hunting trip in Canada. The article was unsigned, but the site's author list included four journalists who are, in fact, staff members at the Toronto Star.

Gnida Project also reported Storm-1516’s first documented disinformation campaign targeting Norway. On July 8, a newly launched website for the “Nature Defence Council” (ndc.eu.com), posing as an environmental NGO, published a story claiming that Norway was in the midst of an environmental crisis caused by severe pollution in the Nitelva River. The analysts believe the attacks on Norway may be connected to the country’s recent role as host of the Internet Governance Forum this past June. Russia had previously submitted a bid to host the event back in 2020.