Russian information operation uses US celebrity Cameos to attack Zelensky | CyberScoop<\/title> <meta name=\"description\" content=\"Kremlin propagandists tricked a half dozen celebrities into recording videos urging Ukraine's president to seek treatment for substance abuse.\"> <link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/russia-hollywood-actors-zelensky\/\"> <meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\"> <meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\"> <meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Russian information operation uses US celebrity Cameos to attack Zelensky\"> <meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Kremlin propagandists tricked a half dozen celebrities into recording videos urging Ukraine's president to seek treatment for substance abuse.\"> <meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/russia-hollywood-actors-zelensky\/\"> <meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"CyberScoop\"> <meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2023-12-07T16:28:29+00:00\"> <meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2023-12-07T19:49:23+00:00\"> <meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/russian-information-operation-uses-us-celebrity-cameos-to-attack-zelensky-2.jpg\"> <meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1920\"> <meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1280\"> <meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\"> <meta name=\"author\" content=\"AJ Vicens\"> <meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\"> <meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@AJVicens\">  <link rel=\"dns-prefetch\" href=\"\/\/securepubads.g.doubleclick.net\">\n<link rel=\"dns-prefetch\" href=\"\/\/use.typekit.net\">\n<link rel=\"alternate\" type=\"application\/rss+xml\" title=\"CyberScoop \u00bb Feed\" href=\"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/feed\/\">\n<link rel=\"alternate\" type=\"application\/rss+xml\" title=\"CyberScoop \u00bb Comments Feed\" href=\"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/comments\/feed\/\"> <link rel=\"stylesheet\" id=\"all-css-2\" href=\"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/wp-includes\/css\/dist\/block-library\/style.min.css?m=1701905043g\" type=\"text\/css\" media=\"all\"> <link rel=\"stylesheet\" id=\"all-css-6\" href=\"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/wp-content\/mu-plugins\/search\/elasticpress-next\/dist\/css\/related-posts-block-styles.min.css?m=1698686983g\" type=\"text\/css\" media=\"all\"> <link rel=\"stylesheet\" id=\"all-css-8\" href=\"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/wp-content\/themes\/scoopnewsgroup\/dist\/css\/frontend.css?m=1701899484g\" type=\"text\/css\" media=\"all\">\n<link rel=\"stylesheet\" id=\"typekit-css\" href=\"https:\/\/use.typekit.net\/itk2qbh.css?ver=7dab012cdc88b5676610\" media=\"all\"> <link rel=\"https:\/\/api.w.org\/\" href=\"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/wp-json\/\"><link rel=\"alternate\" type=\"application\/json\" href=\"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/78426\"><link rel=\"EditURI\" type=\"application\/rsd+xml\" title=\"RSD\" href=\"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/xmlrpc.php?rsd\">\n<meta name=\"generator\" content=\"WordPress 6.4.2\">\n<link rel=\"shortlink\" href=\"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/?p=78426\">\n<link rel=\"alternate\" type=\"application\/json+oembed\" href=\"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/wp-json\/oembed\/1.0\/embed?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcyberscoop.com%2Frussia-hollywood-actors-zelensky%2F\">\n<link rel=\"alternate\" type=\"text\/xml+oembed\" href=\"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/wp-json\/oembed\/1.0\/embed?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcyberscoop.com%2Frussia-hollywood-actors-zelensky%2F&format=xml\">   <link rel=\"icon\" href=\"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/01\/cropped-cs_favicon-2.png?w=32\" sizes=\"32x32\">\n<link rel=\"icon\" href=\"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/01\/cropped-cs_favicon-2.png?w=192\" sizes=\"192x192\">\n<link rel=\"apple-touch-icon\" href=\"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/01\/cropped-cs_favicon-2.png?w=180\">\n<meta name=\"msapplication-TileImage\" content=\"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/01\/cropped-cs_favicon-2.png?w=270\"> <\/head><body class=\"post-template-default single single-post postid-78426 single-format-standard\" id=\"readabilityBody\"> <a href=\"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/russia-hollywood-actors-zelensky\/#main\" class=\"skip-to-content-link visually-hidden-focusable\">Skip to main content<\/a> <\/p>\n<div class=\"ad ad--top ad--top-desktop\">\n<div class=\"ad__inner\"> <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Advertisement<\/span> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p> <main id=\"main\" role=\"main\" tabindex=\"-1\"> <\/p>\n<div class=\"ad ad--top ad--top-mobile\">\n<div class=\"ad__inner\"> <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Advertisement<\/span> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<section id=\"stickybar\" class=\"stickybar stickybar--newsletter js-stickybar\" readability=\"0.82\"> <button class=\"stickybar__close js-stickybar-close\" aria-controls=\"stickybar\"> <svg class=\"icon icon--close\" width=\"21\" height=\"22\" viewBox=\"0 0 21 22\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"m.822.518-.805.805L9.695 11 .017 20.678l.805.805 9.678-9.678 9.677 9.678.806-.805L11.305 11l9.678-9.677-.806-.805-9.677 9.677L.822.518Z\" fill=\"currentColor\" \/><\/svg> <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Close<\/span> <\/button> <\/section>\n<article class=\"single-article content\">\n<div class=\"single-article__container js-single-article-content\">\n<header class=\"single-article__header \" readability=\"25.388888888889\">\n<div class=\"single-article__header-content\" readability=\"30.441860465116\">\n<ul class=\"single-article__eyebrow\">\n<li class=\"single-article__category\"> <a class=\"single-article__category-link\" href=\"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/news\/geopolitics\/\"> <span>Geopolitics<\/span> <\/a> <\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p> Kremlin propagandists tricked a half dozen celebrities into recording videos urging Ukraine’s president to seek treatment for substance abuse. <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"single-article__cover-wrap\">\n<figure class=\"single-article__cover\"> <img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" fetchpriority=\"high\" width=\"640\" height=\"426\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/russian-information-operation-uses-us-celebrity-cameos-to-attack-zelensky.jpg?resize=640%2C426&ssl=1\" class=\"single-article__cover-image wp-post-image\" alt decoding=\"async\" fetchpriority=\"high\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/russian-information-operation-uses-us-celebrity-cameos-to-attack-zelensky-2.jpg 1920w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/russian-information-operation-uses-us-celebrity-cameos-to-attack-zelensky-2.jpg?resize=300,200 300w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/russian-information-operation-uses-us-celebrity-cameos-to-attack-zelensky-2.jpg?resize=768,512 768w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/russian-information-operation-uses-us-celebrity-cameos-to-attack-zelensky-2.jpg?resize=1024,683 1024w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/russian-information-operation-uses-us-celebrity-cameos-to-attack-zelensky-2.jpg?resize=1536,1024 1536w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/russian-information-operation-uses-us-celebrity-cameos-to-attack-zelensky-2.jpg?resize=600,400 600w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/russian-information-operation-uses-us-celebrity-cameos-to-attack-zelensky-2.jpg?resize=252,168 252w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/russian-information-operation-uses-us-celebrity-cameos-to-attack-zelensky-2.jpg?resize=506,337 506w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/russian-information-operation-uses-us-celebrity-cameos-to-attack-zelensky-2.jpg?resize=1013,675 1013w, https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/russian-information-operation-uses-us-celebrity-cameos-to-attack-zelensky-2.jpg?resize=1265,843 1265w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1013px) 100vw, 1013px\"><figcaption> The American actor Elijah Wood, pictured here at a Hollywood premiere in March, was one of the American actors tricked into recording videos used in a Kremlin information operation. (Photo by Kevin Winter\/Getty Images) <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/header>\n<div class=\"single-article__content\">\n<div class=\"single-article__content-inner has-drop-cap\"> <html readability=\"50.291420419808\"><body readability=\"101.9780409042\"><\/p>\n<p>On Aug. 17, Russian news outlet RIA Novosti published a story carrying an urgent message from the American actor John McGinley to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cOver the last year, booze and drugs have become your best friends, I understand,\u201d the actor, perhaps best known for his role as Dr. Cox on the show \u201cScrubs,\u201d told Zelensky. \u201cThe most important advice I can give you in this matter is that the only way out is kindness.\u201d <\/p>\n<p>The <a href=\"https:\/\/ria.ru\/20230817\/zelenskiy-1890522044.html\">story reported<\/a> that the actor \u201ccalled on Zelensky to seek treatment for drug addiction,\u201d and reported that \u201cthe Internet\u201d had noticed strange behavior from the Ukrainian president, \u201coften linking this with drug addiction.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>McGinley\u2019s video message, it turns out, was part of an apparent Russian influence operation documented in <a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.microsoft.com\/on-the-issues\/2023\/12\/07\/russia-ukraine-digital-threat-celebrity-cameo-mtac\/\">a Microsoft report released Thursday<\/a>. It was one of roughly a half dozen such videos in which Western celebrities sent personal messages to \u201cVladimir\u201d via Cameo, a website where users can pay for personalized messages from celebrities or other prominent people. Other celebrities featured in the campaign included Elijah Wood, Dean Norris, Kate Flannery, Priscilla Presley and Mike Tyson, among others.<\/p>\n<div class=\"ad ad--inline_1 \">\n<div class=\"ad__inner\"> <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Advertisement<\/span> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>Designed to be shared by normal people and covered in news outlets, the videos aimed to spread the idea that Zelensky struggles with drug addiction, a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.reuters.com\/article\/factcheck-zelenskiy-cocaine-idUSL1N31S1RD\/\">message<\/a> frequently pushed <a href=\"https:\/\/www.vice.com\/en\/article\/88gpd3\/russia-zelenskyy-drug-addict\">by pro-Russian sources<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>A representative for McGinley did not respond to a request for comment. A representative for Wood told CyberScoop that the \u201crequest was submitted through Cameo and was in no way intended to be addressed to Zelensky or have anything at all to do with Russia or Ukraine or the war.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The operation, which continued through late October, represents one aspect of the Russian government\u2019s ongoing hybrid war against Ukraine. As the war drags on and the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/world\/2023\/12\/04\/ukraine-counteroffensive-stalled-russia-war-defenses\/\">physical gains by either side become harder to come by<\/a>, cyber operations will continue to play a major role, Clint Watts, the general manager of <a href=\"https:\/\/aka.ms\/mtac1\">Microsoft\u2019s Threat Analysis Center, wrote in a new report detailing<\/a> such campaigns that the company has observed between March and October 2023.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cKyiv will require a steady supply of weapons and popular support to continue resistance, and we are likely to see Russian cyber and influence operators intensify efforts to demoralize the Ukrainian population and degrade Kyiv\u2019s external sources of military and financial assistance,\u201d Watts wrote.<\/p>\n<p>Microsoft\u2019s report also details a seasonal pivot of Russian kinetic and cyber attacks to target Ukraine\u2019s agriculture industry, cyberespionage aimed at war crimes investigations, governmental bodies and think tanks and continued intelligence collection from Russian military and foreign intelligence cyber units. <\/p>\n<div class=\"ad ad--inline_1 \">\n<div class=\"ad__inner\"> <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Advertisement<\/span> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>More recently, Russian-aligned efforts have pushed anti-Ukrainian messaging in the context of fighting between Israel and Hamas, a shift that illustrates the ability of pro-Russian information operations to seize on global events to spread their preferred narratives.<\/p>\n<p>For instance, Microsoft noted, a Russian-aligned information operation tracked as Storm-1099 pushed the false claim that Hamas acquired Ukrainian weapons on the black market for its Oct. 7 attack on Israel. Another set of actions pushed claims that foreign recruits fighting in Ukraine, including Americans, were transferred from Ukraine to join the Israeli Defense Forces in Gaza.<\/p>\n<p>A key aspect of Storm-1099 activity, tracked more widely as \u201cDoppelganger,\u201d includes both spoofed news websites and original phony news sites used to push various pro-Russian narratives. <a href=\"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/russia-ai-propaganda-news\/\">Recent reporting from Recorded Future<\/a> revealed the operation using generative artificial intelligence to create news stories that, so far, are receiving very little organic engagement. Researchers at Meta have also closely tracked Doppelganger activities across its platforms, including Facebook and Instagram, and <a href=\"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/ahead-of-2024-election-meta-worries-about-lack-of-information-on-top-tier-nation-state-covert-operations\/\">have separately said<\/a> that the phony material is failing to reach a broad audience.<\/p>\n<p>Doppelganger has primarily targeted Germany and Western Europe more broadly, Watts wrote, but the expansion of targeting and themes over the course of 2023, to include Israel and the U.S. more recently, suggests the group and other pro-Russian information operations will target the 2024 elections.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOutside of Ukraine, the U.S. presidential election, and other major political contests in 2024 may afford malign influence actors an opportunity to put their video media and nascent AI skills to use to turn the political tide away from elected officials who champion support to Ukraine,\u201d Watts wrote.<\/p>\n<p><\/body> <\/p>\n<footer class=\"single-article__footer\" readability=\"1.051724137931\">\n<div class=\"author-card\" readability=\"8\">\n<div class=\"author-card__avatar\">\n<figure class=\"author-card__image-wrap\"> <img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"author-card__image\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ddi.mohflo.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/russian-information-operation-uses-us-celebrity-cameos-to-attack-zelensky-1.jpg?w=640&ssl=1\" alt=\"AJ Vicens\"> <\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><h4 class=\"author-card__name\">Written by AJ Vicens<\/h4>\n<p> AJ covers nation-state threats and cybercrime. He was previously a reporter at Mother Jones. Get in touch via Signal\/WhatsApp: (810-206-9411). <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"single-article__tags-container\">\n<h4 class=\"single-article__tags-title\">In This Story<\/h4>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/footer>\n<p> <\/html><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"single-article__ads js-single-article-sidebar\">\n<div class=\"ad ad--sidebar js-single-article-sidebar-5 ad--rightrail_1 \">\n<div class=\"ad__inner\"> <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Advertisement<\/span> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"ad ad--sidebar js-single-article-sidebar-4 ad--rightrail_2 \">\n<div class=\"ad__inner\"> <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Advertisement<\/span> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"ad ad--sidebar js-single-article-sidebar-3 ad--rightrail_3 \">\n<div class=\"ad__inner\"> <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Advertisement<\/span> <\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/article>\n<div class=\"popular-stories popular-stories--single-post\">\n<div class=\"popular-stories__container\">\n<h2 class=\"popular-stories__title\"> More Scoops <\/h2>\n<p>  <\/div>\n<p>\n<\/div>\n<p> <\/p>\n<section class=\"latest-podcasts\">\n<h2 class=\"latest-podcasts__title\"> Latest Podcasts\t<\/h2>\n<\/section>\n<div class=\"top-categories\">\n<div class=\"top-categories__container\">\n<h3 class=\"top-categories__category-title\">Technology<\/h3>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"top-categories__container\">\n<h3 class=\"top-categories__category-title\">Government<\/h3>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> <\/main> <\/p>\n<div class=\"ad ad--bottom \">\n<div class=\"ad__inner\"> <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Advertisement<\/span> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"interstitial\" class=\"welcome__container\"> <button id=\"close-modal-1\" class=\"welcome__clickable_area\"><\/button> <\/p>\n<div class=\"welcome__ad_wrapper\">\n<p> <button id=\"close-modal-3\" class=\"welcome__continue-button\">Continue to CyberScoop<\/button> <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>   <\/body> <a href=\"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/russia-hollywood-actors-zelensky\/\">Source<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Russian information operation uses US celebrity Cameos to attack Zelensky<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[302,1058,924,514,1302,270,354],"tags":[306,1061,925,518,1303,276,358],"class_list":["post-2176","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-geopolitics","category-hamas","category-information-operations","category-israel","category-microsoft-threat-analysis-center","category-russia","category-ukraine","tag-geopolitics","tag-hamas","tag-information-operations","tag-israel","tag-microsoft-threat-analysis-center","tag-russia","tag-ukraine"],"featured_image_urls":{"full":"","thumbnail":"","medium":"","medium_large":"","large":"","1536x1536":"","2048x2048":"","chromenews-featured":"","chromenews-large":"","chromenews-medium":""},"author_info":{"display_name":"Cyber Scoop","author_link":"https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/index.php\/author\/cyberscoop\/"},"category_info":"<a href=\"https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/index.php\/category\/geopolitics\/\" rel=\"category tag\">Geopolitics<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/index.php\/category\/hamas\/\" rel=\"category tag\">Hamas<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/index.php\/category\/information-operations\/\" rel=\"category tag\">information operations<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/index.php\/category\/israel\/\" rel=\"category tag\">Israel<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/index.php\/category\/microsoft-threat-analysis-center\/\" rel=\"category tag\">Microsoft Threat Analysis Center<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/index.php\/category\/russia\/\" rel=\"category tag\">Russia<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/index.php\/category\/ukraine\/\" rel=\"category tag\">Ukraine<\/a>","tag_info":"Ukraine","comment_count":"0","jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2176","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/11"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2176"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2176\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2176"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2176"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2176"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}

{"id":2176,"date":"2023-12-07T16:28:29","date_gmt":"2023-12-07T16:28:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cyberscoop.com\/?p=78426"},"modified":"2023-12-07T16:28:29","modified_gmt":"2023-12-07T16:28:29","slug":"russian-information-operation-uses-us-celebrity-cameos-to-attack-zelensky","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ddi.mohflo.net\/index.php\/2023\/12\/07\/russian-information-operation-uses-us-celebrity-cameos-to-attack-zelensky\/","title":{"rendered":"Russian information operation uses US celebrity Cameos to attack Zelensky"},"content":{"rendered":"