Russia's 'Doppelganger' Operation Targeted Israel, US, France With Disinformation

A large-scale Russian disinformation campaign, dubbed "Doppelganger," has been identified targeting Israel, the United States, and France, according to a special report by analytical company Alethea. The operation, which began around October 7-9, utilized over a thousand bot accounts to impersonate leading media outlets in Israel and France, generating approximately 150,000 publications in a three-day period. This campaign was synchronized with electoral processes in the three countries: Israeli elections, US midterm elections, and French presidential races.

Intelligence specialists strongly link this activity to two Russian entities: the "Social Design Agency" and the company "Struktura." The operation involved approximately 50 fake profiles on the social media platform X, which repeatedly published coordinated messages. These were then amplified by a network of a thousand bots through textless reposts on popular blogs, a tactic designed to bypass automated search filters. Simultaneously, clones of websites like Walla, Le Parisien, and Le Point were used; their domains, registered in May 2025, had been dormant for about 17 months before redirecting users to fake articles.

The content was tailored to specific audiences. In the US and Israel, narratives focused on the breakdown of bilateral alliances and mass emigration. In France, President Emmanuel Macron was accused of prioritizing military spending over social needs. Researchers identified the campaign's primary goal as undermining trust, dividing societies, and sowing panic. Google had already indexed 12 of the fake articles, posing risks to AI systems, although the actual engagement from live users was found to be very low. This follows previous reports of Russian attempts to influence Israeli Knesset elections.