Russian Bot Farms Continue Their Trolling Activities Despite Ukraine’s Drone Strikes on Yandex

Days after Ukrainian military drones targeted several Russian data centers, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated that the operation had impacted Russia’s disinformation efforts. “It suddenly became a little easier to breathe on many social platforms,” Zelenskyy remarked. “There was less hate, less division, and fewer provocations.”

Zelenskyy isn’t alone in suggesting that the drone strikes, which focused on data centers owned by the Russian tech firm Yandex, have reduced the volume of spam and disinformation from Russian bot networks. Users on social media have reported a decline in activity from MAGA-related accounts and those linked to the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party. Some even noted a significant drop in spam calls and messages.

However, this perception may be misguided. The drone strikes seem to have impacted Yandex’s web crawlers rather than disrupting any disinformation or political operations.

In fact, the account antibot4navalny, which monitors state-sponsored troll farms, indicates that bot traffic remains consistent. On the same day Zelenskyy claimed a reduction in disinformation, antibot4navalny reported that several Kremlin-aligned accounts were still active, posting videos that falsely suggested experts were urging the European Union to lift sanctions on Russia. Danish analyst Valdemar Osted noted that interactions on MAGA and AfD accounts have actually risen since the strikes. Additionally, the charts that supposedly illustrate a decrease in bot activity appear to be generated by AI.

Ironically, the assertion that the drone strikes have curtailed Russian disinformation efforts may itself be a form of disinformation, regardless of Zelenskyy’s statements.