Foreign states promoting disinformation that fuels riots, No10 claims

Russian state media accused of spreading false claims about Southport stabbings

Foreign state actors may be amplifying online disinformation that has fuelled the past week of riots on Britain’s streets, Downing Street has suggested.
Russian state media were among those sharing false claims that the suspect accused of killing three young girls in Southport was an asylum seeker who arrived in the UK last year by boat.
Asked whether foreign states were behind the spread of fake news online, Sir Keir Starmer’s official spokesman said: “I think some of this is public information that clearly we have seen bot activity online, much of which may well be amplified with the involvement of state actors amplifying some of the disinformation and misinformation that we’ve seen.
“And that is something that the NCA (National Crime Agency) and DSIT (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology) are looking at in relation to what we’ve seen online. I obviously can’t get into more detail than that, but it is clearly something that is being looked at.”
The spokesman declined to name any particular states, but added: “The disinformation that we’ve seen online attracts amplification from known bot activity, which, as I say, can be linked to state-backed activity”.
This is a breaking news story and is being updated