When Iran’s Internet Went Down During Its War With Israel, So Did Bot Networks Spreading Disinformation: Report
14th July 2025
When Israeli strikes hit Iran on June 13, it wasn’t only nuclear sites and senior Iranian commanders that were taken out: A covert army of bots meddling in British politics went dark, too.
That’s according to Cyabra, a Tel Aviv-based disinformation detection company that uncovered the operation.
For 16 days, the network — which began operating in May — vanished, according to Cyabra’s report published last week. No posts, no replies, no trace of the 1,300 fake profiles that had posed as British users and fueled online debate around Scottish independence, Brexit and institutional collapse.
The accounts had already reached more than 200 million people through over 3,000 posts, the company said.