Hong Kong Protests
[DRAFT]
Disinfo Operation
During the Hong Kong pro-democracy protests in the summer of 2019, Twitter was the first major platform to uncover coordinated inauthentic behavior originating from a Chinese state-backed operation posing as a grassroots response of Hong Kong-based individuals. The accounts disseminated inaccurate and misleading content about the protestors, claiming that they were planning to murder civilians with slingshots, and comparing them to ISIS. While much of the disinformation was aimed at Hong Kong users, some was also targeted towards the United States and the rest of the English-speaking world, as an attempt to reduce broader global support for the protests.
Defense Tactics
After a tipoff from Twitter, Facebook similarly removed a network of accounts linked to the Chinese government. Later, Google took down over 200 YouTube videos consistent with the campaign.
Context
Coordinated inauthentic behavior attributable to state actors called for a more proactive platform response.