A network of approximately 120 fake Facebook profiles using AI-generated profile pictures coordinated to artificially amplify political content from Bulgarian party 'Ima Takav Narod' (ITN) during an election campaign.
During Bulgaria's parliamentary election campaign in early 2026, fact-checking organization Factcheck.bg discovered a coordinated inauthentic behavior network on Facebook amplifying content from the political party 'Ima Takav Narod' (ITN). The network consisted of approximately 120 fake profiles that used AI-generated profile pictures, verified through the AIorNOT detection tool. These profiles were created following a similar pattern, mostly in late 2025 or early 2026, with email addresses using the template 'digit@hotmail.com'. The fake accounts coordinated to share posts from ITN politicians Pavela Mitova and Stanislav Trifonov multiple times, artificially inflating engagement metrics. For example, Mitova's February 20 post received 336 shares, with around 120 coming from inauthentic profiles. Trifonov's March 4 post was shared 379 times, with nearly half from fake accounts. A second network of approximately 50 profiles emerged in March using the party slogan 'Shte Ima Takav Narod' in their names, also using stolen or AI-generated images. Additionally, posts by Trifonov received suspicious engagement patterns with thousands of heart reactions from profiles with foreign names, indicating purchased engagement services. This coordinated manipulation aimed to game Facebook's algorithm by creating artificial engagement to increase content visibility and reach during the political campaign.
Domain classification, causal taxonomy, severity scores, and national security assessments were LLM-classified and may contain errors.
Using AI systems to conduct large-scale disinformation campaigns, malicious surveillance, or targeted and sophisticated automated censorship and propaganda, with the aim of manipulating political processes, public opinion, and behavior.
Human
Due to a decision or action made by humans
Intentional
Due to an expected outcome from pursuing a goal
Post-deployment
Occurring after the AI model has been trained and deployed
