About sixty dubious phenomena were identified on digital platforms during the French elections in 2022 according to Viginum, the government structure responsible for detecting foreign digital interference and which published its first annual report.
Twelve of them were thoroughly investigated, five were ultimately characterized as foreign digital interference.
These phenomena have multiplied in the world in recent years.
An “inauthentic phenomenon” is characterized by the dissemination of false or misleading information in an “artificial or automated, massive and deliberate” manner, according to the Viginum report.
Spread of inaccurate content before the presidential election
In March 2022, just before the first round of the French presidential election, Viginum said it had noted the rapid spread, on several social media platforms, of content (writings, images, videos) that was manifestly inaccurate or misleading.
These contents evoked a supposed use, by the French government, of voting machines from a Canadian company, accused by certain North American activist currents of having participated in electoral fraud that led to the defeat of the former president. American Donald Trump.
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