Spokesman for Moldovan government warns: account groups paid from abroad attempt to create false narratives on social networks, sow division in society

The government warns citizens that, during this electoral period, organized groups of accounts paid from abroad are attempting to create false narratives on social networks and sow hatred and division in society. The warning comes from the government’s spokesperson, Daniel Voda, who said that the purpose of these messages was to spread lies and provoke disputes among people.

In the context, Daniel Voda provided a string of recommendations for citizens, urging them to get informed only from official sources and ignore provocative messages.

“First and foremost, do not get involved in discussions with these trolls, as their comments are written after planned scripts and are carefully coordinated by these criminal networks. Also, ignore provocative messages. This way, we cut off the source of promotion existing based on the concerned network's algorithms and do not allow these absolutely fake accounts to manipulate the conversation. And most importantly, be vigilant and get informed from the state's official sources, as well as from media institutions reflecting public activity in Moldova. Also, our call is simple: protect yourselves from manipulation, protect your loved ones from these falsehoods, do not fuel propaganda or disinformation and support the truth,” Daniel Voda said.

The spokesperson for the government emphasized that, in the most recent case reported on September 9, a fake video created with the help of artificial intelligence had featured Prime Minister Dorin Recean to spread lies about tariffs in the energy sector.

“Authorities confirmed that this content was promoted and paid for by groups with malicious intents, in order to spread lies about tariffs in the energy sector. Therefore, please pay attention if you see such announcements with the Prime Minister or other high-ranking officials of the country; always check if they appear on the official channels of state institutions,” noted the government’s spokesperson.

He also formulated a string of recommendations that could help citizens recognize these deepfakes. “Lip movements do not match perfectly with the voice; expressions seem to be rigid or strange; the voice has unnatural pauses or accents. Again, we remind you not to let falsehoods deceive you, always verify the sources,” Voda said.

At the same time, he announced that a group of citizens had reported the existence of a channel on the Telegram platform with the name of Moldova’s government that actually does not belong to the institution.

“On this channel, citizens were invited to go through certain stages, some of which requested certain information from citizens. Please be very cautious. All our official channels are known. When we launch a new platform, we do so officially or on behalf of the government on our platforms, not in another context. Pay attention to logos, texts and formats, but most importantly, the government of  Moldova will never request your personal data on its platforms. Meanwhile, malicious individuals could do so. Therefore, do not disclose your personal data for any purpose, whether it's a message you receive on platforms or networks, or by phone, or on another purpose,” Daniel Voda added.