Twitter released a dataset containing a network of 15 accounts, some of which may have been linked to ‘state-sponsored actors’ in Bangladesh. The network tweeted content broadly supporting the re-election of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s Bangladesh Awami League party ahead of the 2018 Bangladesh general election. This activity occurred during a turbulent election campaign, which had resulted in several violent clashes between citizens and police, as well as government crackdowns on anti-government rhetoric. The network targeted Bengali citizens in part by imitating Bengali independent news outlets using a range of tactics, including Twitter banners depicting the relevant news brand. Tweets consistently produced news-like commentary, often with URL links to websites with domain names that also mimicked news websites, or to Facebook accounts that also imitated news reportage. Media attached to these tweets were often overtly pro-government. For example, promotional banners featured Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. Facebook also removed a number of fake news accounts ‘linked to individuals associated with the Bangladesh government’ in 2018.
Bangladesh
Date Released
3 March 2019
Twitter Takedowns
One
Twitter Attribution: Bangladesh
- Some accounts linked to ‘state-sponsored actors’
Key Messages & Targets
- Promoting the incumbent government—Sheikh Hasina’s Bangladesh Awami League party—to domestic audiences
- Amplifying criticism of the political opposition, including the Bangladesh Nationalist Party
Notable Tactics
- Impersonating news outlets and promoting news content with pro-government narratives
- Impersonating activists, students, journalists
- Retweeting key political accounts
Twitter Activity
5,922
Tweets
15
Accounts in dataset
73%
(11)Active accounts in dataset
1%
(59)Were retweets
1%
(59)Had media
98%
(5,804)Had links
2%
(118)Used hashtags
Takedown Timeline
Accounts
15
Accounts removed
Twitter Description
As noted last December, working with our industry peers we identified and suspended a very small number of accounts originating from Bangladesh for engaging in coordinated platform manipulation. The Tweets were entirely in Bengali and focused on regional political themes. All of these accounts and content are now part of the archive and can be investigated and reviewed by interested parties.
Twitter Activity
Top 10 Most Retweeted Accounts
Top 10 Most Mentioned Countries
Top 10 Most Used Twitter Clients
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Posting Activity
Recorded posting patterns, captured tweets, and media data.
Understanding behaviour by looking at daily patterns, captured tweets, and the type of media and commentary made by accounts.
Bangladesh Posting Patterns
Captured media gallery
