Over the course of two days, TikTok recommended at least 30 false videos related to Ukraine to experts from the Institute of Mass Information (IMI). Among them were fakes about a “Western conspiracy”, the “inevitable victory of Russia”, as well as videos aimed at discrediting the Ukrainian authorities and the Defense Forces. Some of this content was created by former Ukrainian politicians known for their pro-Russian stance. Such videos are often disguised as analysis, using clickbait headlines and emotional manipulation, spreading panic-driven messages and creating an illusion of the state’s helplessness.

As part of the study, researchers analyzed videos that TikTok’s algorithms suggested to Ukrainian users on September 9–10, 2025, under the most popular hashtags related to Ukraine and news about it. In total, selections under the tags “Ukraine”, “Ukraine news”, “Ukraine news today”, and similar ones in Russian were reviewed. In each case, the platform offered around 145 videos, and the content of these selections was almost identical.

The researchers identified 30 videos containing disinformation: 17 were classified as fakes and 13 as manipulations. This points to a systematic combination of outright lies with half-truths presented as forecasts or “expert” assessments. In manipulative videos, bloggers and pseudo-experts promoted narratives about a “Western conspiracy”, the “betrayal of the Ukrainian authorities”, or the “inevitable defeat of Ukraine”, often using the format of personal opinion, emotional generalizations, or quotes taken out of context.

Among the circulating fakes were videos about the alleged deaths of Ukrainian politicians, the supposed “division of Ukraine” between Russia and its allies, the absence of electricity and heating, as well as fabricated news created using artificial intelligence. Such videos use edited footage, synthesized voices, clickbait captions, and conspiracy theories.

IMI experts note that TikTok has become a platform where disinformation about Russia’s war against Ukraine is actively spread. The combination of the platform’s technological simplicity with emotional messaging makes these videos particularly dangerous, as a significant share of users perceive TikTok primarily as an entertainment resource and do not expect manipulative or propagandistic content there.