OpenAI Says It Took Down a Malicious Russian Plan to Spread Misinformation on ChatGPT
The network used AI to produce stolen articles, social posts and logos, with some Telegram channels drawing 10,000 to 20,000 subscribers, researchers said.
- OpenAI banned ChatGPT accounts linked to Russia that promoted the International Burke Institute , a fake "think tank" designed to influence Western audiences into believing Russia was superior.
- Operators established the IBI as an "expert community" based in Israel, using a "sovereignty index" to promote narratives favorable to the Kremlin while appearing credible to Western audiences.
- Accessing the system via VPN to hide Russian origins, operators used ChatGPT to generate English-language content; OpenAI found that 34 of 36 articles published on the IBI website between September 2025 and May 2026 were stolen.
- While the campaign reached limited audiences, with some Telegram channels garnering 10,000 to 20,000 subscribers, OpenAI disrupted the network and blocked the associated accounts, neutralizing the immediate operation.
- Researchers emphasize the main risk lies in established infrastructure for future foreign influence, expanding on earlier Russian plans targeting African elections in countries like Burundi, Cameroon, and Madagascar with budgets reaching $600,000 annually.
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12 Articles
OpenAI Bans Cluster of ChatGPT Accounts Posting Fake Comments Promoting Russia
OpenAI banned a cluster of accounts on its popular chatbot ChatGPT with ties to a suspected Russian propaganda campaign, the company announced on Aug. 25. The accounts were associated with the International Burke Institute, a fake think tank that acts as a front for a Russian covert influence campaign, according to OpenAI. What started as an investigation into social media posts led the artificial intelligence company to uncover a “much broader …
OpenAI says it took down a malicious Russian plan to spread misinformation on ChatGPT
OpenAI says it has disrupted a social media influence campaign that is believed to be of Russian originWhat makes this campaign stand out is the underlying architecture, which features a "think tank" with highly questionable credibilityThe objective of the campaign was to influence Western audiences into believing Russia was superior, and that Western countries were sacrificing their sovereigntyAI tools have once again been used for bad, rather …
How Moscow Turned AI Into a Ghostwriting Machine for Global Influence
OpenAI has identified and banned a series of ChatGPT accounts linked to Russia that were secretly used to push Kremlin talking points and create the illusion of an independent research community. Accessing the system through virtual private networks to circumvent geographic restrictions, the operators directed artificial intelligence to write posts and comments in English while explicitly instructing the models to conceal any Russian origin. We…
The campaign was built around the website of the so-called Burke International Institute.
OpenAI has blocked Russian network that was using ChatGPT to spread disinformation
OpenAI has blocked a group of ChatGPT accounts which, according to the company’s assessment, were highly likely to be operated by individuals from Russia. Using artificial intelligence, they created posts and comments for social media and promoted an organisation that presented itself as an...
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