Spilnota Detector Media

Message Kyiv stores have “run out” of fresh products

The network is disseminating information that Kyiv stores are “almost out of fresh products” that need to be kept in refrigerators, in particular dairy products, semi-finished products and meat products. The post includes a photo of empty shelves in the store.

VoxCheck analysts analyzed the case and determined that the propagandists took the photo with empty shelves from an advertisement on OLX in Kazakhstan. And there is no shortage of goods and limited quantities of them, since none of the Ukrainian media have received such news.

Analysts add that according to a survey of retailers conducted by Interfax-Ukraine, the power outages have indeed presented supermarkets with the task of storing perishable goods. Some large networks such as Auchan, Novus and Varus have long had generators that ensure uninterrupted operation during outages. And solar panels were even installed on the roof of one of the Novus stores. But there is no shortage of products.

Propagandists constantly try to exaggerate the scale of problems in Ukraine in order to show the inability of the Ukrainian authorities to cope with the crisis situation. Thus, they want to shift responsibility from the aggressor to the victim of aggression and persuade her to make concessions.

Read on Censor.NET: The Ministry of Agrarian Policy allegedly sends recipes for dishes from pigeons and dogs to Ukrainians

Message In Ukraine, disposable electronic cigarettes with the image of Volodymyr Zelenskyi are being sold en masse

Russian telegram channels are disseminating information that one of the specific Ukrainian online stores of electronic cigarettes sells the “Chill up Zelenskiy” cigarette.

VoxCheck analysts analyzed the stuffing and found that the assortment of the online store indicated by the propagandists does not include products with the image of Volodymyr Zelenskyi. Presumably, the screenshot was faked and replaced with a photo of the original product.

When searching using the keyword chill up, we were able to find original products that did not contain photos of Zelenskyi or other politicians.

However, in general, it is not prohibited to put images of politicians or any other figures on such products: only if the product itself does not violate Ukrainian legislation. For example, on the official website of Epicenter they sell a lighter with the image of Patron the Dog, a dog that inspires explosives. It's a common element of pop culture that arose in the context of a full-scale invasion. It can also be with a cigarette with the image of Ukrainian politicians.

Thus, anonymous people want to discredit the Ukrainian president, because they explain that in Ukraine they are beginning to “idolize” Zelenskyi and “push” his images everywhere: supposedly hinting at a dictatorial form of government. But for some reason, anonymous people, say, do not remember that in Russia there is an entire clothing brand dedicated to the dictator Putin, created by his supporters and participants in the Putin Team movement.

In fact, we recorded many fakes aimed at discrediting Volodymyr Zelenskyi: propagandists used false advertising banners, magazine covers, graffiti, created individual cartoons, and placed Zelenskyi’s faces on various consumer goods (for example, condoms). With the help of Russian propaganda, Zelenskyi was able to appear in various roles, in particular: a vain person who spends all budget funds only on himself; a punitive satanist destroying Ukrainian church property; a person with drug addiction; theft of Western money; a puppet controlled by the West; a monster who throws “everyone in a row” to the front, etc.

Fake In Ukrainian stores, they are allegedly introducing “reservation” of generators for the needs of the National Police and the Territorial centers of recruitment and social support

Russian propagandists publish photos of one of the stores of household and professional equipment of the German brand Kacher in Ukraine. And they add that they seem to have posted an announcement in the store: “Generators are not for sale. Everything has been reserved for the needs of the National Police and the Territorial centers of recruitment and social support”.

VoxCheck analysts add that this photo is fake. The screenshot itself was taken from a video of the Kacher store in Kamianets-Podilskyi: it was edited and information about the alleged reservation of generators was added. But in fact, the poster is an advertisement for vacuum cleaners.

The video was published on the Toktok page of a store from Kamianets-Podilskyi. The fact that the propagandists took the frame from this particular video is indicated by the shooting angle, the identical location of the vacuum cleaners and the design of the tiles on the floor.

So, it is not about “reservation” of generators at all.

Fake Nestlé allegedly sends contaminated water to Ukraine as humanitarian aid

Russian anonymous telegram channels spread the news, allegedly due to the fact that Nestlé Waters France is suspending the sale of mineral water due to problems with its quality - and the remaining products in the warehouse will be sent to Ukraine as humanitarian aid.

Before publication, they are milking the so-called statement of the organization from the social network X, which states that Nestlé Waters refuses to admit that “contaminated water” remained in the warehouse. Therefore, propagandists are trying to prove the opposite - supposedly Nestlé representatives are lying about the quality of water in order to get rid of defective products as quickly as possible.

VoxCheck specialists investigated this case and found out that the company had not made such statements at all, neither about stopping the sale of water, nor about denying the fact of “pollution”.

Analysts said that in February 2024, the international consumer organization foodwatch filed a lawsuit in France against mineral water producers Nestlé Waters and Sources Alma. Companies disinfected contaminated water using prohibited methods and thus sold ordinary tap water as mineral water. Nestlé admitted their guilt and stopped this practice.

But Nestlé Waters France did not publish the news about sending contaminated water to Ukraine and the Gaza Strip on its website, YouTube or X. Moreover, X’s account has been inactive since March 2022. That is, there cannot be a statement for July 2024, as indicated in the fake screenshot.

Fake The packaging of President cheese allegedly depicted Zelenskyi with the caption “on drugs”

Propaganda telegram channels are distributing a video depicting packages of President cheese with the faces of the presidents of Ukraine, France, the USA and Russia. The consumer can choose which cheese to buy: “Zelenskyi on drugs”, “Macron with mold”, “Biden with dementia”, or “Adequate Putin”. It seems that one can now buy such cheese in Russia.

However, this information is not true. The video distributed by propagandists is operative. Its author simply printed out stickers and pasted them onto the original packaging of President cheese. Journalists from the StopFake project reported this.

First of all, the video clearly shows that only four items in the frame have the corresponding design. Immediately behind the cheeses that the author of the video shows on camera, there is a row of processed cheese “With mushrooms” in a standard red package. StopFake journalists also looked at several websites of Russian food delivery services that offer President products, and none of them sell cheeses with the faces of presidents and offensive signatures. And the President brand is owned by the French corporation Lactalis, which is the largest manufacturer of dairy products in the world, so it is unlikely that a multinational company would produce such controversial packaging designs. Moreover, these designs echo key Russian propaganda narratives.

In the end, even part of the audience of pro-Russian telegram channels did not believe the veracity of this news. Many commentators under messages from the video accused the bloggers who distributed it of publishing a primitive fake. Previously, we denied information that Zelenskyi was invited to speak at a rehabilitation center for drug addicts because he is “a good role model”.

Fake Ukrainians allegedly call for updating their data in the Territorial centers of recruitment and social support with a poster of Galicia the SS division

Russian resources are disseminating information that a billboard was allegedly placed in Ukraine depicting the 14th SS Volunteer Division Galicia with the caption “Yesterday it was them, and today it is you”. The billboard allegedly encourages Ukrainians to update their data in the Territorial centers of recruitment and social support. Propagandists add video of the poster's location as evidence.

However, this information is not true, according to the StopFake project. Journalists geolocated the place where the video being distributed was filmed - it turned out to be near Lviv - and asked for comment from the company that places billboards at this address. The Bravo advertising agency responded that they were indeed approached by customers who identified themselves as “employees of the Territorial centers of recruitment and social support” of the Ground Forces. However, as soon as it became known that this information was false, the billboard was backgrounded, and all information about the orders was transferred to the SBU. In addition, at the request of StopFake, the Lviv Regional Military Administration responded that no one ordered such an information campaign.

In the end, the official information campaign “Update your data in the Territorial centers of recruitment and social support”, which was presented by the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine, looks completely different, and in it, military personnel from different combat units honestly admit that they are also afraid, but overcome their fear. At the same time, no references to historical events are used in this campaign.

This is not the first time that Russian propaganda uses the theme of the SS division Galicia in its information war, manipulating historical facts. We have already refuted the information that the Ukrainian post office issued stamps dedicated to the SS division Galicia, and also that in the video message of Volodymyr Zelenskyi we noticed the chevron of the SS division Galicia.

Fake A release of radioactive elements allegedly occurred at the Chornobyl nuclear power plant, the cloud is moving to Kyiv

A release of radioactive elements allegedly occurred at the Chornobyl nuclear power plant, and a cloud of dust is moving to Kyiv, because this is evidenced by the direction of the wind, they write in the Russian segment of a Telegram. Photos of a special “map” are added to the publications, which should show the movement of the radioactive cloud towards the Ukrainian capital.

Analysts from the StopFake project this case and found that the background radiation in Kyiv and its surroundings as of July 22, 2024 was within normal limits. The State Service of Ukraine for Emergency Situations also does not confirm the information about the release. Moreover, no Ukrainian media reported this news.

And the photo that was used in the fake publication was taken from stock - and it actually shows data on the density of plutonium contamination in the 30-kilometer zone of the Chornobyl nuclear power plant for the year 2000.

Fake In Kyiv, graffiti was created with the inscription “Zelenskyi - get out!”

Russian telegram channels write that graffiti with the image of Volodymyr Zelenskyi allegedly appeared in Kyiv. As “proof”, the messages add a photograph of a wall on which Zelenskyi is drawn with a noose around his neck and the inscription “Zelia - get out!”

StopFake fact-checkers managed to find the location where such graffiti was allegedly painted. It turned out to be the wall of the private museum of the Yakubovskyi family in Kyiv, photographed from Oleh Koshovyi street.

But there was no similar graffiti on the spot, that is, the fakers created this graffiti using special programs.

Fake A German magazine allegedly published a cover depicting Zelenskyi's severed head

An alleged cover of an issue of the German satirical magazine Eulenspiegel with the headline “His Finale” is being circulated online. It shows a footballer in a uniform with EU symbols raised to hit Volodymyr Zelenskyi's severed head.

VoxCheck analysts found that the German magazine Eulenspiegel did not publish an issue with such a cover.

Since on the Eulenspiegel website in the section with all published issues, as well as on the magazine’s pages on social networks, there are no issues with such a cover.

The cover circulated online states that this is the sixth issue of the magazine in 2024. However, the cover of the sixth issue for 2024 is different from the fake one. The actual cover features football fans.

Fake A hotline of complaints about aggressive people in military uniform allegedly appeared in Zhytomyr

Photos of an announcement allegedly from the National Police are being circulated online, calling for people to contact the hotline in case of aggression from people in military uniform. The announcement allegedly again contains the hotline numbers of the National Police in Zhytomyr.

However, this information is not true, they write in the VoxCheck project. Photos of the “announcement” can only be found in Russian and pro-Russian sources. Also, the owner of the phone number 0-800-505-222 is not law enforcement agencies, but the WIZARD company. It supplies equipment for water supply, drainage and heating. Another number (+380 (44) 254-96-96) is inactive. GetContact users mark it as the phone number of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. This may be an outdated MIA contact.

In addition, reliable national and regional media did not report the creation of a similar hotline in Zhytomyr. The Main Directorate of the National Police in the Zhytomyr region does not indicate the functioning of such a line.

Fake Ukraine is ready to export electricity to Poland

Propagandists are distributing on anonymous telegram channels a photo of a letter allegedly from JSC National Atomic Power Generating Company Energoatom, addressed to the Minister of Climate and Environment of Poland, Paulina Hennig-Kloska, about their readiness to export electricity to Poland. However, this is fake.

The Center for Countering Disinformation under the National Security and Defense Council drew attention to it. Its specialists checked the information at JSC National Atomic Power Generating Company Energoatom and found out that the letter being distributed was a fake. This indicates several details. Firstly, in the text of the “letter” there are obvious lexical and grammatical errors that are not typical for the Ukrainian language, especially in its last sentence. In addition, the head of Energoatom does not send official correspondence to government authorities of foreign countries, since this violates ethics and rules of international correspondence. The signature on the so-called document is also fake. Also, at the end of 2023, Energoatom became a joint-stock company, and not a state-owned enterprise, as stated in the “document”.

By spreading such fakes, propagandists are trying to cause public discontent and neutralize Russia’s role in the crisis of the energy system in Ukraine. They say that Ukrainians are sitting without electricity not because Russia is carrying out targeted attacks on Ukrainian energy facilities, but because Ukraine allegedly sells electricity abroad.

Fake Validators on Sumy buses allegedly require fares to be paid in rubles

Pro-Russian resources are disseminating information that in Sumy, validators on buses allegedly demand payment for travel in rubles. Some sources write that this became possible thanks to a Russian hacker attack, because soon, according to propagandists, “the city may come under Russian control”. A photograph distributed online shows a bus validator, on the screen of which is visible the inscription: “Amounts 33 rubles. Scan your card”.

However, in fact, the photo was edited in a photo editor, writes the StopFake project. To create the fake image, the Russians used the original photo of the validator from a bus in Kyiv. This photo was published by the mayor of Kyiv Vitalii Klychko on his page on the social network Facebook back in October 2022. In the original photo one can see the inscription on the validator screen “Kyiv, 15:33”,but  not “Sumy, 33 rubles”, as propagandists claim.

The fact that this photo was used to create a fake one is evidenced by their similarity: an identical shadow on the validator screen, as well as a similar interior of the vehicle.

StopFake journalists further analyzed the fake image using the InVID & WeVerify tool to determine whether it had been altered. Analysis of 8x8 pixel blocks using the BLOCK algorithm showed that the grid was locally disrupted. This means that objects in the image have been added or moved. This is also confirmed by other algorithms. In particular, deep learning approaches for detecting manipulation and counterfeiting Mantra-Net and Fusion detected traces of editing in the validator screen area.

This fake aim is to disturb the residents of Sumy, saying that soon the “Russian world” will come to their city.

Fake Insulting graffiti allegedly appeared in Munich after the departure of the Ukrainian national team from Euro 2024

Propagandists are spreading information about the alleged appearance of offensive graffiti in Munich after the defeat of the Ukrainian national team at the European Football Championship. It is alleged that the graffiti allegedly depicts a player of the Ukrainian national team, being led by the hands of “joyful Territorial center of recruitment and social support employees”. However, this is fake.

Specialists from the StopFake project drew attention to it. They found out that in fact there is no reliable information that such graffiti appeared in Munich after the defeat of the Ukrainian team. Checking this image on websites for verification indicates that it was computer generated or altered.

Using the Forensically service, we were able to discover that many details in the image were changed or added to the original photo, which indicates that the picture is not real. Forensically works like a microscope, helping one see those changes in pictures that the eyes would not notice. To detect modified blocks in a published photograph, they used the ELA (error level analysis) section. In this case, the photo consists almost entirely of modified parts: the bicycle, the figures of three men in the graffiti, the frame on the wall and the paving stones clearly stand out in the photo when analyzing the data.

It is also worth noting that the Ukraine-Belgium match, after which the blue-yellows left the tournament, took place on June 26, 2024 in Stuttgart, Germany, and not in Munich. This creates a certain inconsistency and it is not clear why such graffiti should appear in the capital of Bavaria. Previously, the Ukrainian national team was defeated in a match with Romania, which took place on June 17 at the Allianz Arena in Munich, but after this match Ukraine continued to participate in Euro 2024, fighting to leave the group.

All this indicates that the photo is fake and was specially produced by Russian propaganda to discredit Ukraine and undermine the mobilization campaign in the country.

Fake Macron could allegedly resign a week before the Olympics, BBC video

A video from the BBC is being circulated online, citing Bellingcat as saying that Emmanuel Macron may resign a week before the Olympics. The reasons for this decision are the victory of the radical right party in the elections to the European Parliament and the announcement of early parliamentary elections in France, as well as the high risk of terrorist threats and unpreparedness for the Olympic Games.

VoxCheck analysts explained that the BBC and Bellingcat did not disseminate such information. After all, the fake “report” was created from separate frames that were not related to each other.

A reverse photo search on Google showed that propagandists used individual photographs and videos from open sources to create the fake news. In particular, the photo with Emmanuel Macron was taken from the Instagram account of the official photographer of the French President.

Fake PrivatBank allegedly refuses to issue loans to men due to martial law

A screenshot of a message allegedly from the Help Online chat to PrivatBank is being circulated online. In it, the bank, citing martial law, refuses to provide a loan to the user Dmytro Olehovych. Instead, the user is offered to apply for a loan for a female relative.

“The bank does not want to lose money by approving a loan to a person who could mobilize and kill tomorrow,” comment the propagandists.

VoxCheck analysts analyzed this stuffing and determined that such a change in the lending policy is not spelled out in the bank’s Terms and Conditions, and the interface according to the screenshot of the propagandists differs from the real interface of the Help Online chat. Also, the Ukrainian media does not have any mention of such an “innovation”.

Fake Graffiti allegedly appeared in Brussels against Ukraine's admission to the EU

Pro-Russian resources are distributing a video from Brussels showing a building on the walls which allegedly depicts graffiti with a caricature of the President of Ukraine and the caption: “Please invite another bankrupt to the EU”. The voice of a man behind the scenes, who speaks Ukrainian, leads to the conclusion that supposedly Ukraine is not welcome in the EU.

In fact, such graffiti does not exist in the Belgian capital, Ukrinform journalists report. Using Google Maps, they were able to establish that opposite the graffiti allegedly with a caricature of Zelenskyi there is a pet store called Zinneke&Kats.

After Ukrinform journalists contacted this pet store, its owners confirmed that the video distributed by propagandists is fake. At the same time, it was indeed filmed in Brussels, but there is other graffiti on the house, which can be seen in the photo above.

By the way, the fake video was first uploaded to the network on June 25, 2024 - precisely on the day when the first Intergovernmental Conference on Ukraine’s accession to the EU started in Luxembourg, which gave the official start to accession negotiations. Previously, we refuted the information that in Berlin they allegedly created graffiti with Zelenskyi in the image of a maniac.

Fake Territorial center of recruitment and social support employees allegedly beat up an ethnic Hungarian in western Ukraine, Euronews story

A report from the Euronews TV channel is being distributed on social networks. It claims that in western Ukraine, the Territorial center of recruitment and social support workers beat an ethnic Hungarian when they tried to mobilize him.

Fact-checkers of the VoxCheck project established that Euronews did not publish such a video. It was assembled from videos that were not connected to each other.

Through a reverse photo search, it turned out that for the fake Euronews video, propagandists used excerpts of individual videos from open sources. Thus, the footage of the Territorial center of recruitment and social support employees was taken from the report Investigation. Info for April 2024. The video does not mention representatives of the Hungarian minority in Ukraine.

Fake The head of the Vinnytsia Territorial center of recruitment and social support allegedly “banned” the sale of wigs to men

Information is being spread online that supposedly in Vinnytsia the head of the local shopping center and joint venture banned the sale of wigs to men so that they would not try to hide from mobilization by dressing up as women. As proof, publications add a photo of the “announcement” from the Territorial center of recruitment and social support.

VoxCheck analysts investigated the case and found out that the head of the Vinnytsia regional Territorial center of recruitment and social support did not give such an order.

In fact, checking the “announcement” photo in Forensically using the ELA tool showed that the photo contained signs of editing. So, the announcement text was created and added to the photo using a photo editor.

Moreover, a reverse photo search on Google showed that for the fake they used a photo of the Topwigs wig store for 2019, which is located in Kyiv. After all, in this advertisement in the photo it is said about a paid fitting of wigs.

Fake In Lviv, school graduates were allegedly given ribbons with a map of Ukraine without Crimea

Pro-Russian resources are distributing a photo showing Ukrainian graduates at the last bell celebration ceremony, dressed in graduation ribbons. And, according to propagandists, this year the ribbons seemed to depict a map of Ukraine without the temporarily occupied Crimea.

However, this is a fake photo. The photo has been edited, because in the original photo the map of Ukraine on the ribbons is shown including Crimea. This was reported by specialists from the VoxCheck project. Using the PimEyes program, which performs a reverse face search, they found a photo of one of the girls in the feed - she was present at the Ukrainian Greco-Roman wrestling championship in Ternopil.

Then, thanks to a search using the words “last call celebration Ternopil”, it was possible to find original footage from the graduation. In fact, they were made not in Lviv, but in Ternopil - they were distributed by local media on May 31, 2024. In the photo of all graduates, the ribbons of all graduates depict Ukraine within the internationally recognized borders of 1991, including the temporarily occupied Crimea.

In addition, on the fake photo one can see signs of editing, probably with spot correction: on one ribbon in the place of Crimea there is a noticeable darkening, on the other there is a gap in the outline of the map.

Also, in all online stores where such graduation ribbons are sold or produced to order, Ukraine is depicted within the internationally recognized borders of 1991. In the end, this “news” is spread mainly by Russian websites and telegram channels. There is no mention in the Ukrainian media of the incident, which would certainly provoke outrage in the Ukrainian-language segment of social networks, because such situations are reacted sharply in the media space.

Fake The alleged cover of The Economist with the ex-Minister of Defense of Russia

Russian telegram channels are distributing an alleged cover of The Economist magazine with the image of former Russian Defense Minister Serhii Shoihu. The “cover” bears the title “The Last 120 Days” and the message adds that “the final phase of the conflict has already begun”. Propagandists claim that the magazine allegedly published material about decisive events that will lead to Russian victory in the coming months. In fact, this is a fake.

Specialists from the VoxCheck project drew attention to it. They found out that on the official website of the magazine in the All Issues section there is no issue with a picture of Shoihu. Additionally, there is no publication date on the cover. Russian and pro-Russian outlets began circulating the cover on May 14, although The Economist did not publish any new issues that day. The covers for May 4, 11, and 18 are significantly different from the fake ones, and the topics in these issues do not concern ending the war “in 120 days” or any other time frame. This image of Shoihu is also missing from The Economist's social networks.

In addition, a link to the telegram channel “The Economist” was added to the fake message. This channel is not the official channel of The Economist, since the publication does not have a telegram channel at all. The fake channel imitates the British publication, copying its description and logo.

This is not the first time Russians have used Western brands to spread misinformation. They take the name of a Western publication, its logo, and through fake photos and videos they promote narratives that are beneficial to Russia. The authority of the publication gives information to fictitious “legitimacy” and creates the impression that supposedly even Western journalists recognize the inevitability of Ukraine’s defeat.

Fake In the Kyiv Territorial Recruitment and Social Support Center , a conclusion on liability is allegedly provided by a veterinarian

Information is being disseminated online, allegedly due to a lack of qualified personnel, the Territorial Recruitment and Social Support Center is forced to hire veterinarians. As proof of publication, they add a photo to a specialist who allegedly gives conclusions about the liability and photographs of the “office” as in one of the Kyiv Territorial Recruitment and Social Support Center .

VoxCheck analysts analyzed the case and explained that a situation where a Territorial Recruitment and Social Support Center  hired a veterinarian instead of a doctor is impossible. A Territorial Recruitment and Social Support Center does not engage in hiring medical workers at all to conduct military medical examinations.

Military medical commissions for those liable for military service are formed due to the involvement of doctors from civilian health care institutions.

And the propagandists took the photo from the website of the Lassie veterinary clinic - they probably took a photo of the office door with the Surgeon sign.

Fake In Ukraine one can buy a bracelet with a prayer against the Territorial center of procurement and social support

Propagandists spread information that in Ukraine one can buy bracelets with prayers that protect you from the territorial recruitment centers. The text on them calls on the Mother of God, Archangel Michael and the Guardian Angel, as well as a request to all saints. However, this is fake.

Specialists from the VoxCheck project drew attention to it. A reverse search for the photo showed that similar bracelets are sold in Ukraine, but with a different prayer - “Our Father” in Spanish.

The text of the correct prayer does not mention the Territorial centers of procurement and social support and the religious figures mentioned in the misleading description. Similar bracelets are also sold in Russian stores, AliExpress and Alibaba.

In addition, the “text” on the bracelets is likely translated from Russian, since the phrase “my favorite” in the propaganda text should be translated as “my beloved” in Ukrainian.

Propagandists spread such fakes to discredit the Ukrainian authorities and the mobilization process as a whole. Detector Media has repeatedly refuted other fakes against it.

Fake The Ukrainian Armed Forces brigade allegedly used Putin's words in their advertising

Propagandists accused the Ukrainian military of plagiarism. They began to spread information that the Third Separate Assault Brigade of the Ukrainian Armed Forces allegedly used the words of the self-proclaimed Russian President Volodymyr Putin in its recruitment advertising. When publishing this “news”, Russian propaganda adds a photograph of an advertisement for the brigade with the words “Why do we need such a world if there is no Ukraine there?” and Putin's interview with almost identical words.

After disseminating this information, StopFake checked whether one of the Ukrainian Armed Forces brigades actually took Putin’s words for their advertising campaign. They found out that the propagandists themselves added a “quote” to the advertisement, accusing the Ukrainian military of plagiarism.

A reverse image search on TinEye showed that the photo distributed by propagandists appeared online in late April 2024 on the French news site France24. On the website one can see that it was taken by Reuters correspondent Alina Smutko on April 23, 2024 in the Kyiv metro. The original is also available on the Reuters photo bank with a full description. The original photo is different from the one used by Russian propaganda. Putin's quote was added to the image in the photo editor. In the original photograph, completely different words are visible: “Zazhyhai (ignite) in the third assault brigade” (zapaliui - in Ukrainian).

StopFake also ruled out the possibility that the photo used by the propagandists could accidentally show advertisements in different places of the Kyiv metro. If one compares the details of the fake photo and the Reuters photo, one can be sure that this is the same image. Looking closely at the wall in the background, one can see the painted elements positioned the same in both photographs.

Propagandists spread such fakes to show the false closeness of Ukrainians and Russians. Like, we think the same and act the same. However, in reality, Ukraine and Russia are completely different.

Fake The German magazine Handelsblatt allegedly resorted to black humor towards Ukrainian men abroad

Russian propaganda resources are disseminating information that on the cover of its latest issue, the German magazine Handelsblatt depicted a bloody Ukrainian passport, as well as a severed hand, and signed it all with the words: “Yes, dead. But with a new passport”. This is how the publication allegedly responded to the decision of the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry to restrict Ukrainian men abroad from receiving consular services.

In fact, this information is fake, because the German magazine Handelsblatt did not publish an issue with such a cover. One can verify this by looking at the official website of the publication. In addition, the cover distributed by Russian propagandists shows the magazine issue number 87 dated May 4, 2024, but the actual issue of the magazine under this number is dated May 6, 2024 and has a different cover.

This fake is a reaction of Russian propaganda to the temporary cessation of the provision of consular services to Ukrainian men abroad. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine emphasized that the decision to suspend the process of providing consular services to a category of Ukrainian citizens defined by law is a temporary step, due, in particular, to the need to resolve the issue of military registration of citizens of mobilization age abroad.

Fake Monobank allegedly introduces restrictions for “evaders”

Social networks in the Russian segment are disseminating information that the Ukrainian bank Monobank has sent out a warning to users about limiting a number of financial transactions for “evaders” - that is, individuals who may evade mobilization.

As “proof”, the fake robs attached a screenshot from the phone that allegedly received such a message.

This case was investigated by StopFake specialists, who determined that the Ukrainian bank Monobank did not send clients notifications about restrictions for “evaders”.

Moreover, in a comment to StopFake, bank representatives denied sending such messages. In addition, the text of the message itself was compiled with numerous errors and inaccuracies.