TikTok more dangerous to Ukraine than Telegram, say local disinformation experts

Chinese social media giant TikTok is “more dangerous” to Ukraine in terms of spreading Russian propaganda and disinformation than the Russia-founded messaging app Telegram, according to Alina Aleksieeva, the deputy head of Ukraine’s State Center for Countering Disinformation (CPD). 

“We’ve already figured Telegram out — we understand its structure and how it operates,” Aleksieeva said during the press conference in Kyiv last week. “TikTok, however, has become a significant concern for us.”

As of 2022, TikTok had over 10.5 million users in Ukraine, but it’s unclear how its audience has changed since the start of the war. The app’s user base in the country spans not only teenagers and young adults but also individuals over 55. TikTok is owned by Beijing-based ByteDance.

“We often perceive Telegram as the primary culprit, given its abundance of anonymous Russian channels and the impersonation of Ukrainian ones,” said Svitlana Slipchenko, deputy executive director of the data analytics platform Vox Ukraine.

“But the problem extends beyond Telegram — fake news is widespread on TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, and Threads,” she added. “The danger is focusing too narrowly on one platform while Russian propaganda continues to thrive across the entire digital landscape.”

Earlier this year, the CPD published a list of over 80 TikTok accounts used for Russian disinformation. The list includes official accounts of Russian state media, such as TASS, Sputnik, and RIA Novosti.

In early September, TikTok banned dozens of accounts associated with state-owned Russian media, including RT and TV-Novosti, citing security concerns ahead of the U.S. presidential election in November.

The CPD also stated that it is working with TikTok to curb the spread of Russian propaganda and block “harmful” accounts.

Like the U.S., one of Ukraine’s biggest allies, Ukraine has previously considered banning TikTok. The app’s future in the U.S. is uncertain due to concerns that ByteDance may have ties to the Chinese government. U.S. authorities have also accused the app of spreading harmful content and misinformation and posing privacy risks.

"If TikTok really stops working in the U.S., it will be a signal to start such conversations here as well," says Andriy Kovalenko, head of the CPD. He adds that, in addition to spreading harmful content, Russia has created so-called bots to promote it among local users.

Ukraine has been paying close attention to foreign social media apps due to the risks they pose to its users amid the ongoing war. Earlier in September, Ukraine banned Telegram on official devices used by state and security officials, military personnel, and employees of critical infrastructure facilities.

The decision came amid concerns that the Russia-founded app — which has been based in Dubai since 2017 — poses a threat to Ukraine’s national security.

"I have always stood up and continue to stand up for freedom of speech, but the issue of Telegram is not a matter of freedom of speech; it is a matter of national security," said Kyrylo Budanov, head of Ukraine’s defense intelligence.