Thomas Smelter
Researcher
Currently at
Alliance4Europe- Reports
- 2
- Organisation
- 1
- Active since
- 2025
- Latest report
- Sept 2025
Reports
Full database2025
2 reports- Alliance4EuropeSept 2025X/TwitterTelegramMeta
Still marching on(line): How R-FBI Targets Moldova’s Elections
Detailed how the Russian operation Storm-1516 (linked to the sanctioned R-FBI) used fabricated news sites, AI-generated content and impersonated journalists to push 17 false narratives against President Sandu and the PAS party during Moldova’s 2025 elections, accumulating roughly 45 million views via authentic influencers and inauthentic accounts.
Misinformation & DisinformationElection IntegrityBy Saman Nazari, Eto Buziashvili, Sophie Sacilotto, Ania Logvynova, Hannah Schimmele, Thomas Smelter, Ewan Casandjian, Mihaela Tănase, Vasile Popa, Deniz Dirisu, Matteo Pugliese, Christian Haag, Joel Haglund, Larissa Doroshenko and Andrea Nicolai
- Alliance4EuropeSept 2025TikTokTelegramMetaYouTube
Interfering from Exile – Ilan Shor’s Demonstrations in Moldova
Exposed coordinated inauthentic behaviour promoting a Telegram bot tied to fugitive oligarch Ilan Shor ahead of Moldova’s 2025 election: a network of ~117 amplifying accounts republished his content to evade EU sanctions, while the bot offered $3,000/month to protest and harvested passport, geolocation and facial data from participants.
Misinformation & DisinformationElection IntegrityBy Saman Nazari, Jakub Kubś, Hannah Schimmele, Ewan Casandjian, Joel Boehme and Thomas Smelter