Russian network disguises military recruitment as jobs to lure foreign workers - Politico
A Russia-linked online network is disguising military recruitment as ordinary job offers to attract workers from Africa, Asia and Belarus to Russia's war against Ukraine, according to an investigation by Code for Africa shared with Politico.
The recruiters target young men facing unemployment or unstable work, advertising construction and security jobs, film roles and assistance obtaining Russian visas. The offers often promise salaries far higher than recruits could earn at home.
Researchers identified 89 websites, seven social media accounts and 39 messaging accounts or channels used by the network, with new ones appearing daily.
One Facebook advertisement reviewed by Politico presented itself as a “global casting call” seeking African men for a film project. It featured an AI-generated image of men dressed as soldiers.
Another ad, sponsored by a group called IRC Russian Bear, openly showed a soldier wearing Russian flags and promised $15,000 upon signing a contract and a monthly salary of $3,000.
Some recruitment websites also displayed the logos of Western news organizations, including the BBC, falsely suggesting their endorsement.
Recruitment network runs on Western technology
The investigation found that the recruitment operation relied extensively on Western digital infrastructure.
Its main recruitment brand was hosted on a server in Amsterdam, while websites in the network were built using AI tools developed by US and Swedish companies.
Software from an Austrian company collected information submitted by prospective recruits before the data was sent to Russia, according to the investigation. The network also used advertising and tracking technology from Meta and Google.
“The result is that a war sold to Africans, Asians and Belarusians is sold with the tools of the countries that publicly oppose it,” Code for Africa researchers said.
Meta has removed more than 300 advertising campaigns linked to the recruiters, according to Code for Africa director Justin Arenstein.
Google disputed some findings of the investigation, including claims about the extent to which the recruitment websites used Google advertising. The company said it was investigating the report and takes enforcement action when it identifies violations of its policies.
There is no independently verified total of foreign nationals recruited to fight for Russia.
Ukrainian officials estimate that around 1,700 to 1,800 people from 36 African countries have been recruited to fight against Ukraine. Russia disputes allegations of organized recruitment and says African recruits joined voluntarily.