‘Fake Putin’ announces Russia under attack as Ukraine under attack – POLITICO

Hackers broadcast a fake television emergency call from a computer created by Russian President Vladimir Putin who declared martial law after Ukrainian troops entered Russian territory, the Kremlin told state media. on Monday.

Some radio and television stations in border areas broadcast the message, which is supposed to come from the country’s leader. On screen, a pragmatic Putin said he would launch a full-scale mobilization in preparation for all-out war with Ukraine, while urging citizens to evacuate their homes and seek safety further inside Russia.

“Today, at 4 a.m. today, Ukrainian forces … with the support of Washington, entered the territory of the Kursk, Belgorod and Bryansk regions,” the broadcast said, announcing a mass call-up of eligible men to “defeat the dangerous and insidious enemy .”

However, in one statement issued on Monday, Putin’s press secretary Dmitry Peskov insisted the speech “definitely did not happen”. Instead, he said, security agencies are looking into the matter. TV broadcasters in Crimea, held by Russia since 2014; confirmed their systems had been hacked.

“Fake publications purporting to come from real evidence are a growing risk in a world influenced by artificial intelligence,” said Colonel Philip Ingram, a former British military intelligence officer and NATO planner. “In war propaganda, ‘deepfakes’ convincingly delivered for military or political effect are an expected weapon, but they can be very persuasive.”

The apparent cyberattack comes after a series of cross-border raids by pro-Russian militants under the banner of the Free Russian Legion and the Russian Volunteer Corps, said to be Russian civilians intent on fighting against Putin’s rule. On Sunday one of the groups he said he had taken dozens of prisoners during one such incursion and would exchange them for captured Ukrainian soldiers.

Efforts to put Moscow’s forces on the back foot and force them to commit scarce manpower and weapons defending the 1,000km shared border have escalated amid growing expectations that Kiev will launch a major offensive to recapture territory seized by Russia.

Ukraine’s Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Maliar said on Monday that the country’s troops were “shifting into offensive actions” along some parts of the front line. Meanwhile, the commander of Kiev’s ground forces, General Oleksandr Syrskyi, said his units were “advancing” towards the disputed town of Bakhmut.

“The Ukrainian side or those acting on their behalf are playing a clever game using Russia’s long-tested tactics of spreading chaos against them,” said Ian Garner, an expert on Russian propaganda and author of a new book on the war. “With a constant barrage of videos and news stories that blur the line between truth and reality, pro-Ukrainian actors can keep the Russian population on guard.”