Pro-Russian Agents Online Falsely Claimed Zelensky Killed Himself To Sway Public Opinion, Security Firms Say

The risks of propaganda and disinformation 1:40

(CNN) -

Pro-Russia operatives online falsely claimed that Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky had killed himself weeks after Russia launched its war.

It was part of an aggressive effort to bash public morals and undermine the Ukrainian government, US cybersecurity firm Mandiant said on Thursday.

The false claim of Zelensky's suicide is just one of several information operations Mandiant tracked down alleged Russian and Belarusian individuals whose goal was to mislead the public in Ukraine, Russia and other parts of Europe... Or at least confuse the truth about the brutal war.

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Analysts say the influence campaigns underscore how the Kremlin is as engaged as ever in information warfare and efforts to shape perceptions of the conflict.

Even when his soldiers suffer heavy losses on the battlefield.

In another case, Belarusian-linked agents falsely claimed that a Polish criminal network was harvesting the organs of Ukrainian refugees, with the complicity of Polish officials.

"The proliferation of Russia-aligned information operations, both in scale and pace, suggests the importance Russia places on shaping the information environment," Alden Wahlstrom, principal analyst at Mandiant, told CNN. known are leveraging long-standing campaign infrastructure and assets to target Ukraine during the invasion, using capabilities they have invested in developing over time."

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False information about Zelensky is a "suspicious Russian influence campaign""

Mandiant did not directly point the finger at the Russian government for the false narrative of Zelenksy's suicide.

However, he described the activity as a "suspicious Russian influence campaign."

For decades, and since Soviet times, disinformation and other so-called "active measures" have represented a key part of Russia's foreign policy strategy, according to academics.

Facebook and YouTube in March removed a

, or digitally altered, video that sought to show Zelensky calling on Ukrainian troops to lay down their arms.

The real Zelensky appeared in a video shortly after saying that Ukraine's defense continued.

At least some of the disinformation Mandiant analyzed seemed to gain little traction online.

Furthermore, Ukrainian citizens and soldiers show no signs of giving up their resistance to the Russian invasion.

The alleged Russian agents, for example, posted false statements "on a very limited number" of websites and blogs that Zelensky had committed suicide in a military bunker in Kyiv in March, according to Mandiant.

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The Russian government has falsely portrayed its invasion of Ukraine as a "denazification" campaign, even though Zelensky is Jewish.

The story of the fake suicide bears some resemblance to the death of Nazi dictator Adolf Hitler in 1945, who committed suicide in a bunker as Soviet troops advanced.

CNN has requested comment from the Russian Embassy in Washington and the Belarusian Foreign Ministry on the Mandiant investigation.

Other countries seek to influence public opinion

With the eyes of the world on Ukraine, other world powers have taken steps to sway public opinion about the war or sow discord among their rivals.

A pro-Iran intelligence agent posed as a Russian journalist and posted tweets claiming that Israel's intelligence supported Ukraine against Russia on the eve of the war, according to Mandiant.

It was an apparent attempt to heighten intentions between Russia and Israel.

The Governments of Israel and Iran are bitter enemies.

The US government has tried to shape public perceptions of the Ukraine war in its own way.

Even by creating a State Department account on Telegram, a messaging app popular with Russians.

disinformationWar in UkraineRussian invasion of UkraineVolodymyr Zelensky