Russian recruiters are making widespread use of Meta, Google and other Western digital resources to enlist foreigners to fight in the war against Ukraine.
This was reported by the Centre for Countering Disinformation.
According to a study by the African network of digital investigators Code for Africa, Russia’s recruitment system primarily targets young men from poor countries in Africa and Asia.
Researchers identified at least 89 websites, seven Facebook accounts and other social media accounts, as well as 39 accounts and channels on messaging apps, linked to recruitment.
Recruitment is often disguised as offers of civilian work. Foreigners may be offered vacancies in construction, security, help with obtaining visas, or even participation in film castings.
At the same time, some adverts explicitly refer to military service. To attract attention, they use, among other things, AI-generated images of Black men in Russian military uniform.
Potential recruits are promised payments of up to $15,000 for signing a contract and about $3,000 a month.
The Centre notes that technology companies, including Meta and Google, have already blocked hundreds of advertising campaigns and websites linked to Russian recruitment. However, Russian recruiters continue to create new accounts and platforms.
The Centre stresses the need for international coordination to counter the use of digital platforms to recruit foreigners to take part in the war against Ukraine.