The checks carried out by the SRI regarding the so-called troll farms show that there are fake accounts, created and activated during this year, aimed at launching messages to denigrate some presidential candidates, said the president of the Joint Permanent Committee of the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate for parliamentary control over the Romanian Intelligence Service, Senator Ioan Cristian Chirteş.
He specified that, in the electoral context, troll farms or bots generally represent tools used to increase the popularity of candidates or launch attacks against opponents.
The analysis conducted following the appearance of information in the public space regarding these troll farms highlighted the existence and use of fake accounts on social media platforms aimed at artificially boosting the popularity of certain competitors, as well as promoting content directed against opponents, Chirteș stated.
The fake accounts were created in this electoral year, and their activity did not endanger national security, the cited source specified.
"Regarding the fake accounts, they were created and activated during this year, with the accounts aimed at launching messages to denigrate opponents; online platforms will initiate advanced analysis procedures to identify similar accounts and behavioral patterns that outline the real extent of the so-called 'troll networks'; (...)
Considering the scale and impact, in relation to the extremely low level of interactions and content generated by the identified active fake accounts, national security was not affected, and the obtained data has been transmitted to the Ministry of Internal Affairs for handling in accordance with legal responsibilities," further stated the official of the Parliamentary Control Committee over the SRI.
According to him, based on an order issued by a national authority and the observation of violations of the terms of use, platforms may decide to remove the content and/or close the fake accounts.
Chirteș also stated that, so far, in the context of parliamentary and presidential elections, Romania has not identified specific propaganda or disinformation campaign elements orchestrated by hostile external actors against Romania.
Troll scandal
The troll scandal erupted after Elena Lasconi revealed that Mircea Geoană met with Tal Hanan, "an individual who coordinates a very large team of hackers, troll farms, disinformation, an individual who manipulated elections in over 30 countries worldwide."
Independent presidential candidate Mircea Geoană, however, stated that he does not know who Tal Hanan is.
Subsequently, Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu declared that there is a troll farm in a residential building that would help Mircea Geoană in the campaign, and that state institutions should clarify if the activity is legal.
He then provided further details: he did not request information from services and does not know where that specific building is, learning about it "from the political sphere."
Geoană accused Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu of abuse of power and officially requested him to disclose the political source of the information regarding the troll farm and the address of the so-called farm.