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Policypublished

OpenAI Bans Russia-Origin ChatGPT Accounts Tied to Campaign Built on Copied Research

The operation had limited direct reach, but OpenAI says its institutional-looking website, purported experts and geopolitical index created infrastructure that could be expanded over time.

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OpenAI Bans Russia-Origin ChatGPT Accounts Tied to Campaign Built on Copied Research
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OpenAI has banned a cluster of Russia-origin ChatGPT accounts after linking them to a covert influence operation designed to make pro-Russia messaging look independently researched. The operation promoted the International Burke Institute, a purported Israel-based think tank with a polished website, supposed experts, and a “sovereignty index” that favored Russia while criticizing Western countries. The credibility layer was central. OpenAI reviewed 36 expert-linked articles published between September 2025 and May 2026, and said 34 had been copied or misattributed, in some cases with false author credits. ChatGPT supplied the production layer: operators used virtual private networks, or VPNs, because ChatGPT is unavailable in Russia, then prompted the model in Russian to produce social posts and remove linguistic clues about their origin. The material targeted Ukraine, Germany, the European Union, and Western governments. It appeared across Substack, Telegram, X, Facebook, and LinkedIn. One operator also created branding for roughly a dozen Telegram channels focused on Germany, the United States, France, Poland, and Turkey. OpenAI rated the campaign three out of six on the Brookings Breakout Scale: multi-platform distribution with early signs of reaching real users, but limited direct breakout. The company says the broader infrastructure—not the model alone—created the reach and manufactured credibility. It has tied the case to earlier Russian networks, including Bad Grammar, Helgoland Bite, and accounts connected to Rybar. The key constraint is that AI accelerated content production, while the harder task remained building an institution and distribution network that audiences might trust.

Story brief

3 key points

OpenAI’s investigation uncovered a Russia-origin influence network using ChatGPT through VPNs to produce multilingual political content and build credibility for the purported International Burke Institute. The institute published 34 copied or misattributed articles out of 36 reviewed between September 2025 and May 2026, alongside a Russia-favorable “sovereignty index.” Distribution reached Substack, Telegram, X,...

  1. 01

    Operators used VPNs because OpenAI does not provide ChatGPT access in Russia.

  2. 02

    The operation generated Russian- and German-language material targeting Ukraine, Germany, the EU and Western governments.

  3. 03

    One operator created branding for roughly 12 Telegram channels spanning Germany, the U.S., France, Poland and Turkey.

OpenAI has banned a cluster of Russia-origin ChatGPT accounts, shutting down a content-generation route used by a covert influence campaign. The company said it traced AI-generated social posts to a broader operation built to make pro-Russia narratives look independently sourced.

A credibility front behind the posts

The campaign promoted the International Burke Institute, a purported Israel-based think tank. Its website featured copied and misattributed academic work, while a “sovereignty index” portrayed Russia favorably and denigrated Western countries.

OpenAI said ChatGPT-produced posts directed readers to an otherwise credible-appearing institution, complete with purported experts, republished academic work and a purported proprietary risk index. The company said that structure could help manufacture authority and obscure the source of favored narratives.

OpenAI found that 34 of 36 expert-linked institute articles published between September 2025 and May 2026 had been copied from other sources. Some used false author credits.

ChatGPT supplied the production layer

The operators used virtual private networks, or VPNs, to disguise their location because OpenAI does not allow model access in Russia. They prompted ChatGPT in Russian to generate social posts and remove linguistic clues that could reveal their origin.

OpenAI characterized the model as a supporting tool within a wider operation, rather than the operation’s sole asset. Its investigation of AI-generated posts was what led the company to the broader network.

Several platforms, targeted political themes

Generated material appeared on Substack, Telegram, X, Facebook and LinkedIn. The campaign also included German-language posts criticizing Ukraine, the European Union and Germany’s federal government while promoting closer ties with Russia.

One operator created logos for about a dozen Telegram channels focused on Germany, the U.S., France, Poland and Turkey, and regularly requested Russian-language summaries of channel activity.

A recurring enforcement pattern

OpenAI has previously reported disrupting Bad Grammar in June 2024 and Operation Helgoland Bite in 2025, Russian networks that used ChatGPT for political content. Bad Grammar generated Telegram comments about Russia, Ukraine and the Baltic States; Helgoland Bite produced German-language material before Germany’s 2025 federal election. OpenAI also said it shut accounts connected to Rybar in February.

Editorial analysis

Our Read

Our read: This case is less about a high-reach burst than an effort to make later messages citeable. The sharper operational lesson is that the model use created a detection surface: OpenAI says scrutiny of AI-generated posts led it from content to the surrounding network. Account bans can disrupt a production layer, but the meaningful next test is whether the International Burke Institute site and linked channels persist or are rebuilt without the same generation trail. Their durability matters more than follower counts alone.

Sources

  1. cnbc.comOpenAI bans Russian ChatGPT accounts used in covert misinformation campaign
  2. the-decoder.comRussia used ChatGPT to run a covert influence campaign pushing pro-Kremlin narratives across the West

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