FBI report exposes Kremlin’s Doppelgänger psyop targeting German elections

The 277-page report reveals that Russia's disinformation campaign, known as “Doppelgänger” or “double,” began to operate actively in 2022.

Germany, due to its reliance on Russian gas, was singled out as particularly susceptible to Russian influence operations.

As part of this campaign, fake news websites were designed to look like legitimate outlets such as BILD and WELT. These counterfeit sites were then used to disseminate Russian propaganda, promoting a positive image of Russia while undermining NATO. 

"'First and foremost, we need to discredit the USA, Great Britain and NATO, and secondly, we need to convey the truth about the war in Ukraine' and the need to convince Germans to oppose the 'inefficient politics of sanctions,'” the FBI quoted an internal Russian note as saying.

Russian disinformation in German specifically targeted undermining Germany’s ties with the West and swaying public opinion in favor of Moscow’s agenda. “Doppelgänger” bots posing as EU citizens spread claims that the U.S. and the UK were pushing Germany into the war in Ukraine. Targeted advertising was also used to ensure this propaganda reached specific audiences. 

According to the FBI, Russian companies close to the Kremlin are behind the Doppelgänger project, such as “Social Design Agency,” under the direction of Sergey Kiriyenko, a top Kremlin official.