Security News > 2021 > February > Twitter Shuts Down Four Networks of State-Sponsored Disinformation Accounts
Twitter this week announced that it has suspended multiple accounts that were found to be part of four networks involved in disinformation activities associated with Armenia, Iran, and Russia.
The threat actors behind these accounts are believed to be state-sponsored, and Twitter permanently suspended all four networks, for violating its manipulation policies.
Roughly 130 accounts part of that network were suspended at the time, based on information provided by the FBI. The accounts were "Attempting to disrupt the public conversation during the first 2020 US Presidential Debate," Twitter says.
Consisting of 69 fake accounts, the first of the networks was tied to Russian state actors and was meant to amplify narratives aligned with the interests of the Russian government.
An additional 31 accounts that were part of two other networks were believed to be affiliated with the Internet Research Agency and with Russian government-linked actors.
Since October 2018, Twitter has suspended more than 85,000 accounts associated with manipulation campaigns.