Read by the author

A chilling account of Russian information warfare, Putin's Trolls exposes the individuals and organizations behind the Kremlin's coordinated, military-style social media operations against the West.In this courageous and unflinching book, award-winning journalist Jessikka Aro interweaves her own dramatic story as a target of Russian social media propaganda with accounts from many internationally known critics of the Kremlin, who share their own stories of being targeted by Russia's multifaceted cyber warfare campaigns.As Aro began to investigate the impact of the Kremlin's troll operations outside of Russia, she learned that private citizens in many other countries were being victimized by Kremlin-designed information campaigns. These actions were frequently conducted through an organized "troll factory" led by Russia's security and intelligence apparatus, using unregulated social media platforms including YouTube, Facebook, and Twitter. Many of the disinformation campaigns were centered around the 2014 Russian invasion of Ukraine and subsequent occupation of the Crimean Peninsula. "Ms. Aro has done the world a huge service by showing us how these tactics work so we can better defend ourselves going forward." "In this important, firsthand account of Russian malfeasance, Aro shows how she has suffered personally and professionally during her diligent quest to expose the rampant social media incursions orchestrated by Putin and his minions…A damning portrait of Putin and his autocratic, manipulative regime…An extremely valuable lesson." "Shines a bright light on the dark world of online information manipulation operations that can upend the lives of individuals and the health of democracies." "A frightening and fascinating book, chronicling Russian information warfare in irrefutable detail. Exposing Putin's trolls is dangerous, vital, and ultimately heroic work."

Mode of access: World Wide Web