The Security Service of Ukraine blocked a powerful bot farm in Vinnytsia, which worked in favor of the aggressor country. As a result of complex measures, three of its organizers were detained.
Specialized equipment allowed the offenders to register up to 500 anonymous accounts in various social networks, including those banned in Ukraine, every day.
The defendants sold or leased the ready-made “bots” to Russian SMM agencies operating under the roof of the Russian special services.
The criminals earned up to UAH 20 per day just by “renting” one account. The money was received both through their own crypto wallets and bank cards.
According to the case, the bot farm’s Russian clients used fake accounts to spread pro-Kremlin narratives on a massive scale. In particular, regarding the situation at the front and the socio-political situation in Ukraine.
Russian online agitators also justified armed aggression against Ukraine and called for support for racists, including in the international arena.
For this purpose, they submitted information “injections” on behalf of “ordinary” citizens who allegedly live in Ukraine and the EU.
According to the investigation, the organizers of the bot farm were three residents of Vinnytsia. They installed specialized equipment in a rented garage.
During the searches at the address and in the residences of the defendants, the following was found:
- computer equipment with evidence of illegal activity;
- 3 thousand SIM cards of Ukrainian and European mobile operators;
- 13 SIM gateways and other equipment and software;
- bank cards through which they received money from “clients”.
All seized equipment was sent for examination. The investigation is ongoing to establish all the circumstances of the crime. The offenders face up to 15 years in prison.
