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Behind a blue check, someone spoke for Ukraine’s commander—then X shut the whole operation out
Someone impersonated Ukraine's newly appointed top general on X, posting false statements in his name until the platform removed the account, according to Ukraine's Center for Countering Disinformation. The fake carried a verified badge—which on X currently signals a paid X subscription, not identity verification—and pushed fabricated announcements before officials exposed it. The watchdog says a wider effort to discredit the country's military leadership now reaches other senior commanders.
A fake page speaks for the new commander
The Center for Countering Disinformation (CPD), a body under Ukraine's National Security and Defense Council, reported on 28 July that X had blocked a page impersonating the official account of the newly appointed Commander-in-Chief, Major General Mykhailo Drapatyi. The account had earlier spread fakes in his name. The watchdog thanked X for acting on the complaint.
The counterfeit profile, created in July 2026, carried a verified badge and gathered more than 5,500 followers before its exposure. It had published around 30 posts issuing statements in the commander's voice.
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A fabricated "army audit" that reached the media
On 26 July, the fake page posted that an "audit of the Armed Forces" was starting, claiming there would be "no untouchables" and that anyone tied to alleged violations would answer for it. Ukrainska Pravda—a popular Ukrainian publication—ran a story sourced to the account, then annulled the report and apologized to readers.
The General Staff confirmed the X page did not belong to Drapatyi.
The CPD said the operation reaches beyond one general. Posts also try to discredit acting Defense Minister Major General Yevhenii Khmara, Ground Forces Commander Major General Hennadii Shapovalov, and other senior figures in the Defense Forces. The aim, the watchdog said, is to sow division and distrust among the public and troops by spreading fake biographies and building artificially inflated expectations through counterfeit pages.
