Alberto Fittarelli
@fittarelli.com
Sr. Researcher @citizenlab.ca, Disinformation & Harassment. Fmr. Meta. Trainer: find & expose covert influence. I like doers.
Pinned
Alberto Fittarelli
@fittarelli.com
· Oct 3
We Say You Want a Revolution: PRISONBREAK - An AI-Enabled Influence Operation Aimed at Overthrowing the Iranian Regime - The Citizen Lab
We investigate a coordinated network of inauthentic X accounts that is spreading AI-generated content to induce revolt in Iran. The network has been active since 2023, but increased activity during th...
https://citizenlab.ca/2025/10/ai-enabled-io-aimed-at-overthrowing-iranian-regime]
1/ NEW REPORT: “We Say You Want a Revolution” - An AI-Enabled Influence Operation Aimed at Overthrowing the Iranian Regime. We call it PRISONBREAK. Keep reading to find out why.
THREAD 🧵
THREAD 🧵
I struggled for a while with the meaning of “less-lethal”, then realized it’s the same hypocrisy as “alt right”.
Protesters clashed with federal agents for another night outside the Whipple Federal Building, which holds ICE detainees. Agents fired less-lethal munitions and deployed chemical irritants at the crowd.
📷️: Jeff Wheeler
📷️: Jeff Wheeler
January 18, 2026 at 5:30 PM
I struggled for a while with the meaning of “less-lethal”, then realized it’s the same hypocrisy as “alt right”.
Our PRISONBREAK report @citizenlab.ca is cited in this new NYT story on the manipulation of narratives surrounding the Iranian protests.
Battles Over Truth Rage Online Amid Iran’s Internet Blackout
www.nytimes.com
January 16, 2026 at 12:53 PM
Our PRISONBREAK report @citizenlab.ca is cited in this new NYT story on the manipulation of narratives surrounding the Iranian protests.
Reposted by Alberto Fittarelli
Wikipedia was created 25 years ago, today – since then it’s become the largest collection of relatively reliable knowledge in history
But how vulnerable is it to those willing to pay top dollar to polish their reputations? And how do British PR firms help them do it?
But how vulnerable is it to those willing to pay top dollar to polish their reputations? And how do British PR firms help them do it?
January 15, 2026 at 12:21 PM
Wikipedia was created 25 years ago, today – since then it’s become the largest collection of relatively reliable knowledge in history
But how vulnerable is it to those willing to pay top dollar to polish their reputations? And how do British PR firms help them do it?
But how vulnerable is it to those willing to pay top dollar to polish their reputations? And how do British PR firms help them do it?
Reposted by Alberto Fittarelli
If you want to know about the future of AI, take a look at the kaleidoscope of disinfo and psychological operations underway in Iran 🇮🇷
This excellent piece by @mahsaalimardani.bsky.social in @theatlantic.com is a great start
www.theatlantic.com/internationa...
This excellent piece by @mahsaalimardani.bsky.social in @theatlantic.com is a great start
www.theatlantic.com/internationa...
How Doubt Became a Weapon in Iran
AI manipulation, and the very suspicion of it, serves those who have the most to hide.
www.theatlantic.com
January 14, 2026 at 7:23 PM
If you want to know about the future of AI, take a look at the kaleidoscope of disinfo and psychological operations underway in Iran 🇮🇷
This excellent piece by @mahsaalimardani.bsky.social in @theatlantic.com is a great start
www.theatlantic.com/internationa...
This excellent piece by @mahsaalimardani.bsky.social in @theatlantic.com is a great start
www.theatlantic.com/internationa...
True leadership - right here.
"Two to three thousand armed agents of the federal government have been deployed to Minnesota.
Armed, masked, undertrained ICE agents are going door to door, ordering people to point out where their neighbors of color live."
Armed, masked, undertrained ICE agents are going door to door, ordering people to point out where their neighbors of color live."
Governor Walz Addresses Ongoing Federal Presence in Minnesota
YouTube video by Office of the Governor of Minnesota
youtu.be
January 15, 2026 at 12:40 PM
True leadership - right here.
Great investigation by Claire Wilmot at The Bureau of Investigative Journalism on Portland, a firm specializing in “reputation management”… by hiding negative stories through surreptitious editing of Wikipedia articles.
Glad to have contributed with a couple of quotes on this one.
Glad to have contributed with a couple of quotes on this one.
London PR firm rewrites Wikipedia for governments and billionaires
Founded by Keir Starmer’s comms chief, Portland helps rich clients ‘protect their reputation’ – with a shady, off-the-books service
www.thebureauinvestigates.com
January 15, 2026 at 9:46 AM
Great investigation by Claire Wilmot at The Bureau of Investigative Journalism on Portland, a firm specializing in “reputation management”… by hiding negative stories through surreptitious editing of Wikipedia articles.
Glad to have contributed with a couple of quotes on this one.
Glad to have contributed with a couple of quotes on this one.
Let me be *really* clear. Confirmation bias is NOT believing your eyes when you have multiple clear data sources *all* confirming what they see.
Check the bodycam footage. Check the NYT multi-angle reconstruction, and the witnesses statements.
This was plain murder.
Check the bodycam footage. Check the NYT multi-angle reconstruction, and the witnesses statements.
This was plain murder.
January 10, 2026 at 1:02 PM
Let me be *really* clear. Confirmation bias is NOT believing your eyes when you have multiple clear data sources *all* confirming what they see.
Check the bodycam footage. Check the NYT multi-angle reconstruction, and the witnesses statements.
This was plain murder.
Check the bodycam footage. Check the NYT multi-angle reconstruction, and the witnesses statements.
This was plain murder.
Reposted by Alberto Fittarelli
The Trump regime's withdrawal from international "cyber" orgs will weaken cybersecurity coordination and help spread authoritarianism.
[precisely what they probably want to happen]
My comments to @timstarks.bsky.social @cyberscoop.bsky.social
cyberscoop.com/trump-pulls-...
[precisely what they probably want to happen]
My comments to @timstarks.bsky.social @cyberscoop.bsky.social
cyberscoop.com/trump-pulls-...
Trump pulls US out of international cyber orgs
The Trump administration is withdrawing the United States from a handful of international organizations that work to strengthen cybersecurity.
cyberscoop.com
January 9, 2026 at 12:38 AM
The Trump regime's withdrawal from international "cyber" orgs will weaken cybersecurity coordination and help spread authoritarianism.
[precisely what they probably want to happen]
My comments to @timstarks.bsky.social @cyberscoop.bsky.social
cyberscoop.com/trump-pulls-...
[precisely what they probably want to happen]
My comments to @timstarks.bsky.social @cyberscoop.bsky.social
cyberscoop.com/trump-pulls-...
“It is about preventing the world from turning into a den of robbers, where the most unscrupulous take whatever they want.”
German president says US is destroying world order
German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier has strongly criticised the U.S. foreign policy under President Donald Trump and urged the world not to let the world order disintegrate into a "den of robbers...
www.reuters.com
January 8, 2026 at 12:21 PM
“It is about preventing the world from turning into a den of robbers, where the most unscrupulous take whatever they want.”
Reposted by Alberto Fittarelli
Neat idea for sure, but too bad about the censorship on the backend b/c it uses China's 🇨🇳 DeepSeek
January 7, 2026 at 9:26 PM
Neat idea for sure, but too bad about the censorship on the backend b/c it uses China's 🇨🇳 DeepSeek
1/ Russian disinfo sponsors can’t believe their luck at the chaos spurred by their American counterparts. Not only politicians, but their tech enablers too, of course.
Meet “Budjetti”. “She” is on X, of course. Openly antisemitic, racist, anti-Ukraine. And completely unchallenged.
Meet “Budjetti”. “She” is on X, of course. Openly antisemitic, racist, anti-Ukraine. And completely unchallenged.
January 7, 2026 at 9:37 AM
1/ Russian disinfo sponsors can’t believe their luck at the chaos spurred by their American counterparts. Not only politicians, but their tech enablers too, of course.
Meet “Budjetti”. “She” is on X, of course. Openly antisemitic, racist, anti-Ukraine. And completely unchallenged.
Meet “Budjetti”. “She” is on X, of course. Openly antisemitic, racist, anti-Ukraine. And completely unchallenged.
Reposted by Alberto Fittarelli
Bloomberg's X account has more than 800k followers. Their most recent post was shared five times
It would basically come at close to zero cost for outlets like Bloomberg to delete their X accounts, and "We don't want to use a non-consensual deepfake abuse app as a comms platform" is a fine excuse
It would basically come at close to zero cost for outlets like Bloomberg to delete their X accounts, and "We don't want to use a non-consensual deepfake abuse app as a comms platform" is a fine excuse
January 7, 2026 at 7:19 AM
Bloomberg's X account has more than 800k followers. Their most recent post was shared five times
It would basically come at close to zero cost for outlets like Bloomberg to delete their X accounts, and "We don't want to use a non-consensual deepfake abuse app as a comms platform" is a fine excuse
It would basically come at close to zero cost for outlets like Bloomberg to delete their X accounts, and "We don't want to use a non-consensual deepfake abuse app as a comms platform" is a fine excuse
Nazis don’t know decency.
I would hope that whatever your view of the policy or legal question of immigration, if you’re a halfway decent (or at least emotionally stable) person you recognize this as an absolutely horrific and un-American thing to post.
December 26, 2025 at 3:33 PM
Nazis don’t know decency.
Reposted by Alberto Fittarelli
Two stories side by side in WashPost
December 26, 2025 at 2:20 AM
Two stories side by side in WashPost
Reposted by Alberto Fittarelli
MIT Technology Review profiles @rondeibert.bsky.social, who understood that civil society needed digital defense long before just about anyone else and has been doing it ever since.
www.technologyreview.com/2025/12/24/1...
www.technologyreview.com/2025/12/24/1...
Meet the man hunting the spies in your smartphone
Ronald Deibert and his research group, the Citizen Lab, have rigorously worked to unveil alarming digital threats for the past two decades. Now, he warns, this kind of work is under threat.
www.technologyreview.com
December 24, 2025 at 9:44 PM
MIT Technology Review profiles @rondeibert.bsky.social, who understood that civil society needed digital defense long before just about anyone else and has been doing it ever since.
www.technologyreview.com/2025/12/24/1...
www.technologyreview.com/2025/12/24/1...
Reposted by Alberto Fittarelli
I’ll just note that the US didn’t do this to China, which outright bans US social media websites
US bars former EU commissioner Breton and others over tech rules ft.trib.al/TgoG45B
US bars former EU commissioner Breton and others over tech rules
France hits out at visa sanctions as Washington targets what it calls the ‘global censorship-industrial complex’
ft.trib.al
December 24, 2025 at 11:12 AM
I’ll just note that the US didn’t do this to China, which outright bans US social media websites
Reposted by Alberto Fittarelli
"There's basically an economy around disinformation now"
Maybe now could be the right time to start asking politicians and your organisation's social teams why they're actively assisting monetised disinformation schemes by retaining their accounts at X and doing free volunteer work by posting there
Maybe now could be the right time to start asking politicians and your organisation's social teams why they're actively assisting monetised disinformation schemes by retaining their accounts at X and doing free volunteer work by posting there
Latest commentary from me about how the design of social media platforms incentivise and fail to moderate the spread of false and misleading information about the #Bondi massacre. As usual, X is the ringleader.
www.abc.net.au/news/2025-12...
www.abc.net.au/news/2025-12...
X payments incentivised misinformation in wake of Bondi shooting, expert says
US social media platform X incentivised the spread of inflammatory misinformation in the wake of the Bondi Beach shootings, a digital media expert has said.
www.abc.net.au
December 18, 2025 at 10:24 AM
"There's basically an economy around disinformation now"
Maybe now could be the right time to start asking politicians and your organisation's social teams why they're actively assisting monetised disinformation schemes by retaining their accounts at X and doing free volunteer work by posting there
Maybe now could be the right time to start asking politicians and your organisation's social teams why they're actively assisting monetised disinformation schemes by retaining their accounts at X and doing free volunteer work by posting there
“Report on that fact”. That’s all that needs to be said.
"I think it’s really important that Wikipedia remain neutral and that we refrain from saying things that are controversial in wiki voice."
Read our full interview with Wikipedia cofounder Jimmy Wales: www.theverge.com/tech/846184/...
Read our full interview with Wikipedia cofounder Jimmy Wales: www.theverge.com/tech/846184/...
![Quote: "I think we have to always dig deep and examine it, and I think it’s absolutely fine to say, “The consensus of academic genocide researchers is that this was genocide.” [...] That doesn’t mean that Wikipedia should say it in our own voice.
- Jimmy Wales, cofounder of Wikipedia](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:7exlcsle4mjfhu3wnhcgizz6/bafkreigkmqoaqzh6wocdgg3tdyahkpc3vwavwoz73by4bl4vlixwns4f4u@jpeg)
December 17, 2025 at 9:22 PM
“Report on that fact”. That’s all that needs to be said.
Reposted by Alberto Fittarelli
Just to be clear: if 'no one was ready' a lot of people fucked up, bc those of us who work on this laid out what was going to happen 8yrs ago.
The twofold issue that 1)it's not just a tech problem, and 2) Big Tech allowed itself to be ref-worked into spinelessness.
www.nytimes.com/2025/12/08/t...
The twofold issue that 1)it's not just a tech problem, and 2) Big Tech allowed itself to be ref-worked into spinelessness.
www.nytimes.com/2025/12/08/t...
A.I. Videos Have Flooded Social Media. No One Was Ready.
www.nytimes.com
December 16, 2025 at 1:42 AM
Just to be clear: if 'no one was ready' a lot of people fucked up, bc those of us who work on this laid out what was going to happen 8yrs ago.
The twofold issue that 1)it's not just a tech problem, and 2) Big Tech allowed itself to be ref-worked into spinelessness.
www.nytimes.com/2025/12/08/t...
The twofold issue that 1)it's not just a tech problem, and 2) Big Tech allowed itself to be ref-worked into spinelessness.
www.nytimes.com/2025/12/08/t...
Reposted by Alberto Fittarelli
OpenAI's Sora 2 ultrarealistic (but fake) AI videos used by Russian disinformation operations, who could have predicted it?!?
www.nbcnews.com/tech/social-...
www.nbcnews.com/tech/social-...
As war with Russia drags on, ultrarealistic AI videos attempt to portray Ukrainian soldiers in peril
A series of AI-generated deepfakes and videos, many made with OpenAI's Sora, appears to show Ukrainian soldiers apologizing to the Russian people and blaming their government for the war.
www.nbcnews.com
December 15, 2025 at 1:56 AM
OpenAI's Sora 2 ultrarealistic (but fake) AI videos used by Russian disinformation operations, who could have predicted it?!?
www.nbcnews.com/tech/social-...
www.nbcnews.com/tech/social-...
Get off X. If you’re there for the audience, you’re just damaging your own optics.
Incredible, not in a good way, how many academics, journalists, and policy folks continue to actively attend the Nazi Bar on a daily basis.
The richest man on the planet has a pinned tweet that's just straight up white nationalism. I can't say I miss Twitter!
December 14, 2025 at 5:43 PM
Get off X. If you’re there for the audience, you’re just damaging your own optics.
1/ Yesterday’s Q2-Q3 Adversarial Threat Report by Meta was interesting in many ways. For us @citizenlab.ca, it was a blast from the past.
For the first time, Meta’s investigators attributed what in 2019 we had named Endless Mayfly - a relentless, sophisticated influence op targeting Iran’s enemies.
For the first time, Meta’s investigators attributed what in 2019 we had named Endless Mayfly - a relentless, sophisticated influence op targeting Iran’s enemies.
Burned After Reading: Endless Mayfly’s Ephemeral Disinformation Campaign - The Citizen Lab
Using Endless Mayfly as an illustration, this highlights the challenges of investigating & addressing disinformation from research & policy perspectives.
citizenlab.ca
December 12, 2025 at 4:15 PM
1/ Yesterday’s Q2-Q3 Adversarial Threat Report by Meta was interesting in many ways. For us @citizenlab.ca, it was a blast from the past.
For the first time, Meta’s investigators attributed what in 2019 we had named Endless Mayfly - a relentless, sophisticated influence op targeting Iran’s enemies.
For the first time, Meta’s investigators attributed what in 2019 we had named Endless Mayfly - a relentless, sophisticated influence op targeting Iran’s enemies.
Reposted by Alberto Fittarelli
In 2019, we @citizenlab.ca published an investigation into a disinfo / influence operation we called "Endless Mayfly", and which we attributed at the time to an "Iran-aligned entity"
citizenlab.ca/2019/05/burn...
Now, Meta's latest adversarial threat report showing we were spot on 👇
citizenlab.ca/2019/05/burn...
Now, Meta's latest adversarial threat report showing we were spot on 👇
December 11, 2025 at 10:38 PM
In 2019, we @citizenlab.ca published an investigation into a disinfo / influence operation we called "Endless Mayfly", and which we attributed at the time to an "Iran-aligned entity"
citizenlab.ca/2019/05/burn...
Now, Meta's latest adversarial threat report showing we were spot on 👇
citizenlab.ca/2019/05/burn...
Now, Meta's latest adversarial threat report showing we were spot on 👇
Reposted by Alberto Fittarelli
We condemn the ongoing targeting of exiled #HongKong activist #CarmenLau, who has faced persistent transnational repression since fleeing her home four years ago. Most recently, her neighbours were sent fake, sexually explicit images of her: www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
Exiled Hong Kong activist target of harassment campaign
The campaign saw letters containing fake images of Carmen Lau sent to her neighbours.
www.bbc.co.uk
December 11, 2025 at 10:37 AM
We condemn the ongoing targeting of exiled #HongKong activist #CarmenLau, who has faced persistent transnational repression since fleeing her home four years ago. Most recently, her neighbours were sent fake, sexually explicit images of her: www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
Textbook transnational repression targeting @carmenlau.bsky.social and once again, belittling *women* who bravely stand up to autocracy.
Sexually explicit letters about exiled Hong Kong activists sent to UK and Australian addresses
Exclusive: Letters with deepfake images of Carmen Lau in UK and targeting of Ted Hui in Australia part of growing harassment
www.theguardian.com
December 11, 2025 at 8:03 AM
Textbook transnational repression targeting @carmenlau.bsky.social and once again, belittling *women* who bravely stand up to autocracy.