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The Center for Counteracting Disinformation at the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine informs about the threat of the development of sabotage groups in Ukrainian territories. In particular, the occupiers can cover themselves with journalistic IDs by finding a «channel» from Europe. This is stated in the Telegram channel of the JRS.

«This time, the occupiers found a «loophole» in Europe. They testify to us with the credentials of «Ruptly» video agents, which is a subsidiary of Russia Today. The Russian video news agency has an office in Berlin. They may also be called the Redfish Channel or the Maffick Agency,» – the National Security and Defense Council notes.

Therefore, citizens are asked to be vigilant and pass information about enemy reconnaissance and sabotage groups (RSG) to the SBU chatbot: @stop_russian_war_bot.

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According to Hromadske, Interior Minister Denys Monastyrskyi stresses that there are enemy saboteurs in all regions of Ukraine, with the exception of the western regions.

«We will no longer name the areas where no shelling took place or where representatives of sabotage groups were not found. Unfortunately, this phenomenon has become commonplace for us. In Kyiv, for example, I receive daily information about detained representatives of enemy RSGs and fire adjusters. They are also present in Lviv, Ivano-Frankivsk and Rivne regions. This problem is everywhere today,» – he said.

At the same time, the National Security and Defense Council records the intensification of cases of Internet fraud in the form of requests for assistance. Therefore, citizens should be careful.

Among the most common signs of fake appeals to help:

• indication of informal communication channels (personal mobile phones, bank cards);
• there are no references to official representatives of volunteer communities / OVA / Red Cross;
• very specific or unclear requests (eg 7.62 gray wolf night vision systems), requests for expensive medical / military equipment;
• emphasis on emotions of guilt, pity, and the text is often highlighted in capital letters and exclamation marks;
• indication of the amount of collected funds without the tool of their calculation (checks, Patreon systems, crowdfunding platforms);
• the text is translated by an automatic translator (many Russisms, incorrectly used word forms);
• requests are too obvious (food, medicine).

Translated by Vitalii Holich

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Lviv Now is an English-language website for Lviv, Ukraine’s «tech-friendly cultural hub.» It is produced by Tvoe Misto («Your City») media-hub, which also hosts regular problem-solving public forums to benefit the city and its people.