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Four Case Studies on Foreign Information Manipulation and Interference : ADAC.IO Publication – Deliverable 4.2

Hedling, Elsa LU orcid ; Isaksson, Elsa LU ; Kyst, August LU ; Lenk, Timo and Ördén, Hedvig LU orcid (2026)
Abstract
In this publication, the ADAC.io project brings together four independent case studies examining how the online information environment is exploited to deceive, divide, or defraud through coordinated information operations. Each study looks at a different facet of Foreign Information Manipulation and Interference (FIMI), and all four confront the same recurring difficulty: separating genuinely foreign interference from domestic actors who draw on the same repertoire of tactics for their own ends.
What the case studies cover:
Manipulation of EU climate policy in the run-up to the 2024 European elections, showing how Russian state media and EU-based far-right outlets deploy near-identical rhetoric and cross-cite one another, and how... (More)
In this publication, the ADAC.io project brings together four independent case studies examining how the online information environment is exploited to deceive, divide, or defraud through coordinated information operations. Each study looks at a different facet of Foreign Information Manipulation and Interference (FIMI), and all four confront the same recurring difficulty: separating genuinely foreign interference from domestic actors who draw on the same repertoire of tactics for their own ends.
What the case studies cover:
Manipulation of EU climate policy in the run-up to the 2024 European elections, showing how Russian state media and EU-based far-right outlets deploy near-identical rhetoric and cross-cite one another, and how “flooding” the information space with mutually reinforcing content lends falsehoods plausibility through sheer repetition,
Gendered disinformation, with a typology distinguishing five patterns of “gendered FIMI” and an assessment of the vulnerabilities it exploits,
Financial fraud, analysing Facebook scam campaigns impersonating the Swedish bank Swedbank to test whether ADAC.io’s attribution framework also applies to hybrid threats beyond political manipulation,
Cross-platform manipulation around the 2025 Munich Security Conference and the 2025 Moldovan parliamentary elections, introducing the concept of “agenda-surfing”: opportunistic actors injecting their grievances into an unfolding event rather than running a tightly orchestrated campaign. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
; ; ; and
organization
publishing date
type
Book/Report
publication status
published
subject
keywords
FIMI, case studies, attribution, disinformation
pages
96 pages
publisher
ADAC.iO
project
ADAC.IO
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
adbb6b98-cb67-410b-81ba-c6fcaf2e8947
alternative location
https://adacio.eu/four-case-studies-on-foreign-information-manipulation-and-interference
date added to LUP
2026-09-24 16:59:31
date last changed
2026-10-13 14:14:57
@techreport{adbb6b98-cb67-410b-81ba-c6fcaf2e8947,
  abstract     = {{In this publication, the ADAC.io project brings together four independent case studies examining how the online information environment is exploited to deceive, divide, or defraud through coordinated information operations. Each study looks at a different facet of Foreign Information Manipulation and Interference (FIMI), and all four confront the same recurring difficulty: separating genuinely foreign interference from domestic actors who draw on the same repertoire of tactics for their own ends.<br/>What the case studies cover:<br/>Manipulation of EU climate policy in the run-up to the 2024 European elections, showing how Russian state media and EU-based far-right outlets deploy near-identical rhetoric and cross-cite one another, and how “flooding” the information space with mutually reinforcing content lends falsehoods plausibility through sheer repetition,<br/>Gendered disinformation, with a typology distinguishing five patterns of “gendered FIMI” and an assessment of the vulnerabilities it exploits,<br/>Financial fraud, analysing Facebook scam campaigns impersonating the Swedish bank Swedbank to test whether ADAC.io’s attribution framework also applies to hybrid threats beyond political manipulation,<br/>Cross-platform manipulation around the 2025 Munich Security Conference and the 2025 Moldovan parliamentary elections, introducing the concept of “agenda-surfing”: opportunistic actors injecting their grievances into an unfolding event rather than running a tightly orchestrated campaign.}},
  author       = {{Hedling, Elsa and Isaksson, Elsa and Kyst, August and Lenk, Timo and Ördén, Hedvig}},
  institution  = {{ADAC.iO}},
  keywords     = {{FIMI; case studies; attribution; disinformation}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  month        = {{07}},
  title        = {{Four Case Studies on Foreign Information Manipulation and Interference : ADAC.IO Publication – Deliverable 4.2}},
  url          = {{https://adacio.eu/four-case-studies-on-foreign-information-manipulation-and-interference}},
  year         = {{2026}},
}