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Fake NV – how a cloned newsroom turned an AI video into a $140 million corruption scandal For two days in September, a website that looked almost indistinguishable from one of Ukraine’s best-known news organisations carried an extraordinary corruption story. It claimed that Ukraine’s National Anti-Corruption Bureau had raided former defence procurement chief Arsen Zhumadilov and discovered more than $140 million in cash packed inside refrigerator boxes. One box supposedly carried the words “For the Servant of the People” – an apparent reference to President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s political party. The raid never happened. The photographs and video presented as evidence were fabricated, and the news organisation reporting the story was not the New Voice of Ukraine but a cloned version of it. The episode is a compact example of an increasingly effective disinformation technique. Rather than inventing a new propaganda outlet and trying to build its credibility from scratch, an operator can simply steal the identity of an established newsroom and place fabricated material inside an otherwise convincing copy of its editorial environment. A newsroom copied almost in full The counterfeit site appeared at nvukraine.com, while the authentic New Voice of Ukraine operates at nv.ua and english.nv.ua. Registration records examined by fact-checkers show that the false domain was created on 21 September 2026, two days before the fabricated article appeared. According to NV’s own investigation, the imitation went much further than copying a logo: the operators reproduced the site’s visual design, sections, branding, contact information and genuine editorial material. A snapshot of legitimate NV content from 23 September appears to have been copied onto the counterfeit site, into which the operators inserted a single false article. That article claimed that NABU had searched premises connected to Zhumadilov, who had headed Ukraine’s Defence Procurement Agency until August, and seized $140 million in cash. The story was published in several languages, including Ukrainian and English, suggesting that the operation was intended not only for Ukraine’s domestic information space but also for foreign audiences following the war and Western support for Kyiv. AI supplied the supposed evidence The false article was supported by a video purportedly showing the money discovered during the raid. NABU said no such search or procedural action had taken place and identified the footage as fabricated using artificial intelligence. Independent fact-checker Lead Stories found no credible Ukrainian or international reporting confirming either the raid or the alleged seizure, while searches of NABU’s own published material produced no evidence supporting the claim. The operation therefore combined two separate forms of synthetic credibility. The AI-generated footage supplied what looked like visual proof, while the cloned NV website supplied institutional proof: an apparently reputable Ukrainian newsroom supposedly confirming that the event had happened. Neither element needed to withstand close scrutiny for long. Together, they only needed to appear credible enough to be copied, quoted and redistributed before the deception was exposed. From a fake Ukrainian source into the Russian information ecosystem On 24 September, the story began moving through large pro-Russian Telegram channels. Ukraine’s Center for Strategic Communications traced early amplification to Golos Mordora, with roughly 149,000 subscribers, and Militarist, with around 277,000. Within less than an hour, other channels including VOBLA, Rossiya Seychas and Ostashko! Vazhnoye were circulating versions of the same claim. It subsequently appeared on X and on Russian-language websites including e-news.su and pressa24.ru. Babel calculated that posts carrying the fabrication had accumulated approximately 370,000 views by the morning of 25 September. The story also moved beyond the Russian-language ecosystem. English-language versions appeared in online communities including Lemmy and Hexbear, while accounts on X shared direct links to the counterfeit NV article. NV later reported that larger Russian media and propaganda outlets, including RIA Novosti, Life, Vesti, Ukraina.ru and Mail.ru, had reproduced or discussed the claim. Kirill Dmitriev, head of the Russian Direct Investment Fund and a Kremlin representative involved in contacts with the United States, also shared it on 25 September. This amplification is significant, but it should not be confused with proof of authorship. Publicly available evidence shows how the false story entered and spread through a Russian and pro-Russian information ecosystem. It does not establish which organisation registered the cloned domain, generated the video or directed the operation from the outset. Why copy NV? The operation relied on source laundering. A claim originating directly from a Russian Telegram channel that Ukraine’s defence procurement system had concealed $140 million would immediately carry an obvious political context. A claim apparently uncovered by an established Ukrainian newsroom looks very different. Once the fabricated NV article existed, subsequent accounts could cite what appeared to be an independent Ukrainian source rather than present the allegation as their own. Each repost moved the story another step away from its manufactured origin. The use of an English-language version strengthened that mechanism for audiences outside Ukraine. The underlying narrative was also carefully chosen. Corruption in Ukrainian defence procurement is a genuine subject of public scrutiny and investigative reporting, so the fabricated story did not require audiences to accept an entirely unfamiliar premise. It inserted a false event into a real area of political concern. That mixture of authentic context and fabricated evidence can be more persuasive than a completely invented story because much of the surrounding information feels recognisable. What can – and cannot – be attributed Ukrainian authorities and NV describe the episode as a Russian information operation, and its distribution can be documented extensively across pro-Russian and Russian media channels. The available public evidence, however, does not identify the organisation that created the counterfeit website, nor does it link the operation forensically to a named Russian intelligence service, military unit or state contractor. The most precise description is therefore a Russian-aligned disinformation operation whose fabricated material was systematically amplified through the Russian information ecosystem. That distinction matters. Distribution can be observed directly; command-and-control is harder to establish and should not be inferred without evidence. The newsroom itself becomes the deepfake The most important feature of the operation was not the $140 million figure or even the AI-generated video. It was the counterfeit newsroom surrounding them. The operators copied a real publication, populated it largely with genuine material and inserted a single false story, allowing the fabrication to borrow the accumulated credibility of journalists who had nothing to do with it. This points to a broader evolution in synthetic media. AI can fabricate an image, a voice or a video, but an influence operation can now fabricate something larger: the source that supposedly verified the evidence. In the Fake NV operation, the article, the video and the website reinforced one another, creating not simply a false story but a manufactured chain of credibility. Sources The New Voice of Ukraine — investigation into the cloned website https://english.nv.ua/nation/nv-discovers-fake-copy-of-website-with-planted-story-cites-russian-links-50644601.html The New Voice of Ukraine — Russian amplification of the $140 million fabrication https://english.nv.ua/russia-spreads-fake-140-million-ukraine-corruption-story-during-dmitriev-u-s-talks-50644647.html Lead Stories — independent fact-check https://leadstories.com/hoax-alert/2026/09/fact-check-fake-story-claims-140-million-found-at-home-of-ukraines-zhumadilov-marked-servant-of-the-people-nv-website-originated-it.html Babel — AI video and distribution analysis https://babel.ua/en/news/130469-a-video-is-sharing-online-about-140-million-found-in-the-possession-of-the-ex-head-of-the-defense-procurement-agency-this-is-an-ai-video-distributed-by-a-clone-of-ukrainian-media Center for Strategic Communications and Information Security — initial debunk https://spravdi.org/en/ai-fake-about-140-million-amid-us-talks-how-russians-impose-the-image-of-corrupt-ukraine-on-the-west/ Center for Strategic Communications and Information Security — NABU confirmation https://spravdi.org/u-merezhi-poshyryuyut-shi-fejk-pro-nibyto-obshuky-nabu-v-eksgolovy-agencziyi-oboronnyh-zakupivel/ Detector Media — distribution and NABU response https://detector.media/infospace/article/252806/2026-09-25-u-merezhi-pidrobyly-sayt-nv-dlya-poshyrennya-feyku-pro-obshuky-v-eksochilnyka-agentsii-oboronnykh-zakupivel/ Keywords #DISINFORMED #Episode10 #FakeNV #NewVoiceOfUkraine #Ukraine #Russia #RussianDisinformation #RussianInfluence #Disinformation #InformationWarfare #InfluenceOperations #ForeignInterference #FIMI #MediaImpersonation #ClonedMedia #FakeMedia #FakeNews #ArtificialIntelligence #AI #AIGeneratedContent #SyntheticMedia #AIVideo #SourceLaundering #NarrativeLaundering #CorruptionNarrative #UkraineCorruption #DefenceProcurement #NABU #ArsenZhumadilov #Telegram #SocialMediaManipulation #DigitalInfluence #Propaganda #OSINT #MediaManipulation #WRLD

IL “TEATRO EDICOLA” di SAN SEVERO DIVENTA “CASO STUDIO” INTERNAZIONALE sulla “STANFORD SOCIAL INNOVATION REVIEW (SSIR) — STANFORD UNIVERSITY” SOURCE: https://l1nq.com/rruntbb “LA GAZZETTA DI SAN SEVERO” SAN SEVERO (FG) — Sei persone entrano in un’edicola. Davanti a loro non ci sono giornali, riviste o tabacchi, ma una scena teatrale di meno di due metri quadrati. Gli attori sono a pochi passi dagli spettatori, quasi senza separazione tra chi recita e chi guarda. È così che a San Severo un luogo abbandonato da anni ha ricominciato a vivere. E oggi quella piccola esperienza teatrale è finita sotto i riflettori internazionali. È la storia del “Teatro Edicola”, il progetto realizzato dalla compagnia Foyer ’97, diretta artisticamente da Francesco Gravino, che ha trasformato una vecchia edicola di via Tondi in uno dei palcoscenici più piccoli probabilmente mai immaginati. Il progetto è partito il 27 marzo scorso con una formula tanto semplice quanto originale: sei posti a sedere, uno spazio scenico ridottissimo e spettacoli della durata di pochi minuti. Una distanza minima tra pubblico e interpreti che modifica completamente il tradizionale rapporto tra spettatore e teatro. La scommessa, però, è stata subito premiata dal pubblico. Più di 60 persone hanno assistito agli spettacoli in un solo pomeriggio e le tre giornate della stagione inaugurale hanno fatto registrare il tutto esaurito. Da esperimento locale, il “Teatro Edicola” è diventato così un caso capace di attirare l’attenzione ben oltre i confini della provincia di Foggia. A settembre 2026 la “Stanford Social Innovation Review (SSIR)”, rivista della Stanford University, pubblicherà sul proprio sito e nell’edizione cartacea Fall 2026 il reportage “The Six-Seat Revolution”, firmato dal dr. Luciano Magaldi Sardella e seguito editorialmente dal deputy editor David V. Johnson. L’interesse della rivista americana non riguarda soltanto l’originalità della proposta teatrale. Il Teatro Edicola viene infatti osservato come possibile esperienza di innovazione sociale e rigenerazione urbana a basso costo. L’idea è particolarmente interessante in un Paese come l’Italia, dove sono numerose le edicole che hanno cessato la propria attività e che rischiano di diventare spazi vuoti nel tessuto delle città. Subscribe to the Medium newsletter La domanda, in fondo, è semplice: può un luogo nato per vendere giornali diventare nuovamente un punto di incontro? A San Severo la risposta è stata affidata al teatro. L’edicola non è stata semplicemente recuperata dal punto di vista fisico. Ha cambiato funzione, trasformandosi in un luogo dove gli artisti incontrano direttamente il pubblico e dove lo spettacolo diventa parte della vita quotidiana della strada. “Il teatro viene nella strada dove cammini ogni giorno”, ha spiegato Francesco Gravino, sintetizzando la filosofia alla base del progetto. Ed è proprio questo aspetto ad aver reso l’esperienza interessante anche sul piano della possibile replicabilità. Le prime richieste di informazioni sono già arrivate da altre città, tra cui Lucca e Roma, interessate a conoscere il modello e le modalità per realizzarlo. La forza del Teatro Edicola sta anche nella sua apparente sproporzione: un investimento e uno spazio minimi per produrre un effetto culturale molto più grande. Non servono un grande teatro, una platea da centinaia di posti o strutture complesse. Basta uno spazio inutilizzato, un’idea e la volontà di restituirlo alla comunità. Quella vecchia edicola di via Tondi, dunque, racconta qualcosa che va oltre il teatro. Racconta la possibilità di ripensare gli spazi delle città, restituendo una funzione sociale a luoghi che sembravano averla definitivamente perduta.

Let me get this straight. YouTube deletes my channels with over 1M subscribers, 3,000+ videos and 7 years of hard work, despite me never having received a strike or warning. When I ask for a reason, they refuse to give me one because providing the specifics could enable https://t.co/D2o34nxBow #YouTube #ContentCreator #FreeSpeech #Thetweetdoesnotmentionanyspecificcountries.Therefore #therearenocountrycodestoreturn.

Welcome back to POLYPHONY, an independent publication from Sweden exploring world affairs, global cultures, literature, art, and history. We look beyond headlines to examine the deeper currents shaping our changing world through rigorous analysis and storytelling. This week’s POLYPHONY Notes explore a world of opposing currents: Europe’s evolving security role, intensifying conflicts, global power competition, and the strategic shifts reshaping an uncertain world. Explore “World affairs | This week” and our latest literary memoir, “The weight of a single word: Woman.” Read, share, subscribe and contribute to POLYPHONY. https://polyphony26.substack.com/p/world-affairs-this-week

Ich kann schon wieder Miete, Strom, Telefonkosten etc. nicht zahlen. Der Grund dafür ist nicht, dass mir das Geld fehlt. Mein Grund- und Basis-Konto lehnt Überweisungen ab. Ich streite eine Woche mit meinen Sachwaltern. Der Grund? So lief es bisher: Direktüberweisungen, sei es zum Beispiel vom @Verlag_Antaios oder Digistore24, erlaubte meine Bank sowieso nicht. Sie mussten erst über ein anderes Konto laufen und dann, mit doppelten Belegen, jeweils mit vorangemeldeter E-Mail, erbarmte man sich und erlaubte mir eine Überweisung auf mein Grund- und Basiskonto. Dazu verwendete ich bisher das Qonto-Konto. Das wird mir jetzt zum 2. August gekündigt, und Digistore hat mich bereits im Mai gekickt. Die Überweisungen von Subscribestar auf das Qonto-Konto genügen aber den gestrengen Sachwaltern bei meinem Grund- und Basiskonto nicht. Auf E-Mail-Belegen, Screenshots und Auszügen sind offenbar nicht genug Informationen vorhanden. Deshalb weigern Sie sich, seit Wochen Geld auf das Konto zu überweisen. Der Grund, warum ich diese SEPA-Lastschriften nicht auf andere Konten einrichte, liegt auch auf der Hand. Sie werden mir, wie zum Beispiel das Qonto-Konto, jederzeit gekündigt. Das Ganze ist einfach unglaublich mühsam und langsam. Vermieter, Energielieferanten etc. verlieren auch die Geduld, weil ständig Zahlungen ausbleiben. Gleichzeitig weigert sich die Sparkasse in Deutschland, meinem Unternehmen ein Konto zu geben. In Österreich geht ein Verfahren auf Gewährung eines Geschäftskontos in die dritte Instanz, und zur Gründung eines Unternehmens musste ich unlängst lange nach einem Notar suchen, der ausnahmsweise erlaubte, die Einlage auf sein Treuhandkonto einzuzahlen. Ich poste das einfach hin und wieder, um euch zu zeigen, wie viel völlig sinnlose, unsichtbare Arbeit diese Form der Repression einem Dissidenten wie mir auferlegt. Bitte nehmt euer stabiles Bankkonto und die unglaubliche finanzielle Freiheit, die ihr habt, wenn ihr dazu auch noch Dienste wie PayPal nutzen könnt, nicht für selbstverständlich. Wenn Ihr für das System unangenehm werdet, wie @COMPACTMagazin @AUF1TV oder ich, dann passiert genau das: #Finanzen #Banken #Dissidenten

Το Part 2 είναι εδώ με απλό subscribe. Ο @blue_G_OF με στήνει σε κάθε γωνιά και με ανοίγει μέχρι να με χύσει. Υποταγή θα πει να σταματάει η ελευθερία σου εκεί που ξεκινούν οι καύλες του άλλου. Μπες τωρα στο καναλι μου : https://t.co/8AOBwAeGbB https://t.co/NtpJW5bybo https://t.co/ULkoCzfOcC #Subscribe #Domination #Pleasure

Primo mese di approfondimenti postati su Substack. 13 post con replica tradotta in inglese. Quasi tremila subscribers di cui quasi 500 abbonati a pagamento. 90.000 visualizzazioni. Contenuti ripresi da quotidiani e da periodici come POLITICO Europe. Buon gradimento da parte della community. Nessuno lasciato fuori: tutti gli abbonamenti richiesti da utenti noti sono stati abilitati. Grande visibilità dell'operazione anche all'interno del mondo politico. Troll e bot azzerati. Ottimo 🤗 Grazie a tutti perché il successo è tutto merito vostro. #Substack #Community #Successo

Netflix is being sued in Texas for allegedly collecting data on children and adults without consent and utilizing "addictive" design features to maintain user engagement, with the state's Attorney General asserting that the company misled subscribers about its data practices and is seeking legal penalties. #DataPrivacy #ChildProtection #TechEthics #US #TX