Social media Archives - Investigate Europe

3 April 2020 Covid-19

Facebook and Instagram have a serious Coronavirus problem

By Nikolas Leontopoulos and Thodoris Chondrogiannos

Adverts and sponsored posts for face masks and other medical supplies continue to circulate on Facebook and Instagram, despite efforts to crack down on profiteers and fraudsters who are exploiting the sky-rocketing demand created by the Covid-19 pandemic. Read more "Facebook and Instagram have a serious Coronavirus problem"

Facebook and Instagram – still – have a problem with fraudulent coronavirus ads

3 April 2020
BuzzFeed, Germany

1 November 2019 Inside a troll farm

Undercover at a troll farm

By Katarzyna Pruszkiewicz, Wojciech Cieśla and Konrad Szczygiel

We all have heard about troll farms. However, much of the reporting about bots and trolls is just speculation. To find out what is really involved, our reporter went undercover to work as a troll for six-months at a troll farm in Wroclaw. This report gives insights about a commercial company that turned the spreading of hate and propaganda into their business model. Read more "Undercover at a troll farm"

Undercover reporter reveals life in a Polish troll farm

1 November 2019
The Guardian, UK

Hidden in the troll farm

31 October 2019
BuzzFeed, Germany

28 October 2019 Inside a troll farm

Inside a troll farm

By Investigate Europe

For six-months an undercover journalist joined our investigation team looking into disinformation. Working for a commercial troll farm in Warsaw, she and her colleagues managed almost 200 profiles on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, wrote thousands of messages and comments, promoted her clients products and trolled politicians and her clients' competitors. Read our report on what the troll farm work was described internally as the "Lame Rebellion". Read more "Inside a troll farm"