🇮🇩 Indonesia

Govt says millions of ‘hoax’ posts removed in election run-in

Indonesia’s government claimed that tech firms had removed 12 million “hoax” posts in the run up to the country’s presidential election in February. The government said this election had seen a shift in the type of misinformation and disinformation disseminated. During the last election in 2019, hoaxes tended to involve fabricated stories about a candidate’s alleged ties to China. The recent election saw claims relating to alleged bias in government institutions toward a presidential candidate.

🇵🇭 Philippines

China using AI to control narratives on South China Sea, says investigation

An investigation by a Filipino media outlet Press One claimed that Chinese state media outlets had used AI in a bid to change negative public opinion toward China on the issue of the South China Sea dispute. The investigation said: “China Daily has deployed AI-enhanced short videos of real-life reporters who have mostly toed Beijing’s line on the sea dispute with the Philippines and neighbouring countries.” Press One also claimed Chinese state media organisations had using the Filipino language to propagate pro-China messages on websites and social media platforms.

🌏 Regional

Data leak reveals China’s hacking operations in Southeast Asia

A document dump anonymously posted online in February pointed to how hackers at a Chinese state-linked security contractor had targeted government agencies across Southeast Asia for years. The leak suggested attacks penetrated state systems in Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia, Indonesia, Myanmar and Cambodia, as well as private companies.

Russia, ASEAN become digital partners

Russia’s Mission to ASEAN announced that Russia and ASEAN had signed an agreement that made them official partners in the digital sphere. A short statement by the Russian mission said it was “looking forward to…joint initiatives and knowledge exchange in this cutting-edge field.”

Russia’s MoD claims Southeast Asians fighting in Ukraine

A document released by Russia’s Ministry of Defence (MoD) claimed that more than 13,000 foreign nationals had arrived in Ukraine since February 2022 to “fight for the neo-Nazis [Russia’s reference to Ukraine]”. Of this figure, the RussiaMoD claimed there had been 10 Indonesians, 17 Filipinos, and three Thais that had joined Ukrainian forces. 

📝 Editor’s Note

#OpTenggara will enter into a hiatus, with the newsletter focusing more on non-state armed groups for the foreseeable future. Hope you enjoyed the last year of #OpTenggara updates! 

🇮🇩 Indonesia

Russian Embassy promotes ‘RT Academy’ for ASEAN journalists

The Russian Embassy in Jakarta published a post on X promoting the launch of the “RT Academy”, which it said would be an “English-language, international online educational project for journalists” in ASEAN. The “RT Academy” will provide free media courses starting from 1 April 2024. Aside from skilling up ASEAN journalists, RT said the academy would also establish “direct lines of communication and engagement between local journalists and the RT International newsroom and heads of our social media departments”.

🇸🇬 Singapore

Singaporean businessman designated under foreign interference law

Singapore has used its foreign interference law for the first time, designating a Singaporean businessman Philip Chan Man Ping as a “politically significant person”. The government said Chan’s activities in Singapore were “directed toward a political end” and that he had “shown susceptibility to be influenced by foreign actors”. Chan, who was born in Hong Kong before becoming a Singapore citizen, reportedly facilitated links between business communities in Singapore and Hong Kong, and promoted commerce between both cities and China. In 2023, Chan was invited to attend the meetings of Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, which is affiliated with the Chinese Communist Party and its United Front Work Department, which attempts to influence and co-opt targets around the world to further the CCP’s goals. He was also reportedly involved in uniting overseas Chinese to tell China’s story

🇲🇾 Malaysia

Malaysian mercenaries linked to Wagner Group in Donetsk, says Ukraine military

A report in the Malaysian Star said that Malaysian mercenaries had been spotted in the Donetsk region of Ukraine, according to claims made by the Ukraine military. According to the military, the Malaysians were accompanied by a translator and a former member of the Wagner Group at a training ground in the area.

🇲🇲 Myanmar

Junta holds own academy awards, promotes pro-military propaganda

Myanmar’s junta reportedly held its own film awards in the capital Naypyidaw on 3 February 2024, which featured a range of pro-military films aimed at bolstering the junta’s prestige. One film, titled “A Red Blanket”, portrayed the junta as facing militants of the Kachin Independence Army (KIA), which the film portrays as committing multiple atrocities.

Meta removes network supportive of Myanmar military

In Meta’s latest Adversarial Threat Report, it claimed to have taken down a network of 381 Facebook accounts, 88 Pages and 19 Groups for violating its coordinated inauthentic behaviour policy. Meta said the network used fake accounts to pose as members of ethnic minorities, sharing articles that praised Myanmar’s army and criticised ethnic armed organisations and minority groups. Meta said it had linked the activity to “individuals associated with the Myanmar military”.

Myanmar, Russia continue financial integration

Russian state-owned news agency, TASS, reported that from 20 February 2024, bank cards using Russia’s Mir payments system will work for tourists and investors in Myanmar. Banks in Myanmar have already begun connecting to Russia’s alternative to SWIFT, which powers most international money transfers (Russia’s alternative is known as the System for Transfer of Financial Messages, SPFS). The activist group Justice for Myanmar, which opposes the Myanmar junta, claimed that the financial linkages showed that Russia and Myanmar were working together to bypass sanctions.

🇵🇭 Philippines

False claims of Mindanao’s secession from the Philippines 

Following calls by former President Rodrigo Duterte for the island of Mindanao to secede from the Philippines, a YouTube video falsely claimed that Mindanao’s secession had already happened. The video was posted by an account named “Showbiz Sports Fanatics”, which had more than 87,000 followers. Talk of separatism on Mindanao is particularly sensitive, given that the region has historically witnessed armed separatist activity driven by groups such as the Moro National Liberation Front and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front.

Hoax warns of Davao bomb threat

Online posts warning that various locations in Davao, Mindanao would be bombed as "retaliation" for a rally held there by supporters of former President Rodrigo Duterte, have been refuted by police. The posts listed a bank, church, market, transport terminal, and shopping malls as apparent targets for the attacks. At the rally, Duterte reportedly launched against his successor, current President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.

Philippine govt says Chinese hackers targeted its websites, email systems

The Philippine government claimed that hackers operating in China had tried and failed to access websites and e-mail systems of the Philippine president and government agencies. Among the targets were the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT), the website of National Coast Watch, and the personal website of Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. The incident comes amid tense Philippines-China relations connected to ongoing territorial disputes in the South China Sea.

US wants Philippines-China ‘proxy war’ in South China Sea, says Chinese state media

A video report on the Chinese state-media daily, Global Times, alleged that the US is behind the Philippines “aggressive and confrontational” tactics in the South China Sea. The report said the US aims to “stir up a proxy confrontation” between the Philippines and China, in relation to their territorial disputes in the sea.

🇵🇭 Thailand

Google takes down coordinated Thai influence operations on YouTube 

Google’s Threat Analysis Group (TAG) claimed to have terminated three YouTube channels as part of its investigation into coordinated influence operations linked to Thailand. According to TAG, the campaign was sharing content in Thai about Thai politicians and the Thai royal family. 

🇧🇳 Brunei

Russian Embassy in Brunei mocks Biden, talks Ukraine

There’s been some interesting online activity from Russia’s Embassy in Brunei over the past month. The embassy’s account published an image mocking US President Joe Biden’s alleged memory loss. Earlier in the month, the account celebrated what it claimed was the destruction of an American-made Abrams tank in Ukraine.

🇹🇱 Timor Leste

Australia competes with China for influence in Timor-Leste

It’s not often that Timor-Leste gets a mention in these pages, but recent developments have emphasised how the country is at the heart of the battle of influence in the Pacific. Aiming to counter the growing influence of China in the region, Australia pledged US$23 million to support Timor-Leste’s policing services and US$2.6 million to help Timorese workers integrate in Australia. The move follows a deal made by Timor-Leste and China, announced in September 2023, that saw the two counties upgrade their bilateral relations, including plans to enhance military cooperation and explore developments of Timor-Leste’s oil and gas resources.

🌏 Regional

China held record number of military exercises in Southeast Asia in 2023

A report in CNA said China participated in 14 joint defence cooperation engagements in Southeast Asia in 2023, including a joint coast guard patrol with Vietnam, a land and maritime exercise with five Southeast Asian countries, as well as a naval exercise with Cambodia. Analysts said China’s military, the People’s Liberation Army, benefits from the exercises by observing the capabilities of militaries in the region. 

🇮🇩 Indonesia

Political party uses ‘fake Suharto’ deepfake to garner votes

A politician from Indonesia’s Golkar Party posted a video to social media that featured a deepfake of the country’s former authoritarian leader Suharto, who died in 2008. In the video, the fake Suharto calls on his audience to vote for Golkar in the country’s upcoming election, to be held next month (Suharto was the founder of Golkar). The video received 4.6 million views and was re-posted over 3,000 times.

Violence against displaced Rohingya driven by ‘disinformation campaign’

An attack by university students on a Rohingya shelter in Aceh was reportedly influenced by an organised disinformation campaign on social media. Posts falsely accused Rohingya refugees in Aceh of taking food and land, and of sexual harassment and other bad behaviour. Analysts suggested the campaign was driven by political parties or groups who were trying to stir up anti-Rohingya sentiment for their own agenda, ahead of Indonesia’s election in February.

Jemaah Islamiyah ‘spreading disinformation to provoke conflict’

The Islamist extremist group Jemaah Islamiyah (JI), factions of which had historical links to al-Qaida, is reportedly spreading targeted disinformation in a bid to influence voters in Indonesia’s upcoming election. JI had attempted to join the mainstream political arena by forming a party, but it had failed to qualify for this year’s election.

🇮🇩 Singapore

Prime minister featured in deepfake video

A deepfake video of Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong appeared online, depicting Lee as being interviewed by a presenter from Chinese news network CGTN. In the video, the two discuss an investment opportunity purportedly approved by the Singapore government, referring to it as a "revolutionary investment platform designed by Elon Musk". The video ends with the presenter urging viewers to click on a link to register for the platform, to earn "passive income".

🇲🇲 Myanmar

Ethnic rebels accuse military of ‘deceitful accusations’

The Arakan Army (AA), an ethnic rebel group based in Myanmar’s Rakhine State, has accused Myanmar’s military of spreading “deceitful accusations” that claim the AA is involved in the illegal drugs trade. In late December 2023, a report on a Myanmar government website claimed that AA’s funding came mainly from drug smuggling and extortion.

‘Fake’ video of shadow govt official being deported from Japan

A TikTok video that claimed the foreign minister of Myanmar's National Unity Government (NUG) —a shadow administration maintained by officials removed from power in the country's 2021 coup—had been deported from Japan has been found to be a fake. The video was shared on pro-military Telegram channels, as well as on Facebook.

🇵🇭 Philippines

False post speaks of upcoming ‘war’ on Mindanao

A false post published online in December 2023 claimed that the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF, a former armed Islamist rebel group) and Islamic State (IS) had declared a war in Mindanao during the upcoming period of Ramadan. The post originally appeared in 2020, but appeared to have been recycled following a bomb explosion at Mindanao State University in early December 2023.

🇮🇩 Indonesia

#JulidFiSabilillah online operation targets Israeli soldiers

An online movement calling #JulidFiSabilillah has been attempting to harass soldiers of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) by spamming their social media accounts through calls, comments and messages, according to CNA. Malaysian users are also involved in the movement. According to Erlangga Greschinov, a leadership figure in the movement, it began after some Indonesian users saw Israeli soldiers on Instagram celebrating in Gaza. Users involved in the movement attempt to gain the trust of Israeli soldiers and obtain their personal information as a means of harassing them, and also attempt to sow discord among Israelis through disinformation.

Investigation highlights local media outlet promoting pro-Russia content

A fascinating investigation by the UK-based Centre For Information Resilience (CIR) and others delved into Russian influence in Indonesia’s information environment. The investigation found that the YouTube channel of local Indonesian media outlet, Tribun Timur, has been amplifying pro-Russia content in relation to the war in Ukraine, glorifying Russian forces and attempting to undermine Ukrainian forces. According to CIR, much of Tribun Timur’s pro-Russia content was taken directly from pro-Russia Telegram channels, the accounts of Russian government sources, or Russian state-controlled media outlets. Many pro-Russia comments, written in Cyrillic (not Bahasa Indonesia or English), were identified on Tribun Timur YouTube videos, potentially suggesting the presence of coordinated promotion of the campaign.

🇨🇳 China Influence

(A roundup of links tracking China’s footprint and voice in Southeast Asia)

📝 Philippines: Philippine National Security Adivser Eduardo Año has said that China is using information to sow division within the Philippines, particularly in regard to the South China Sea dispute between both countries, the Philippine Star reported. His claims followed a new resolution lodged by Philippine senators that called on the Philippine government do more to highlight the Philippines’ claims in the South China Sea dispute to the Philippine public. 

📝 Philippines: China’s state-run newspaper, Global Times, claimed it had “discovered a resonance between the Philippines and some Western media” in relation to the South China Sea dispute. The newspaper said both the Philippines and Western media were attempting to  create a false narrative that portrays China as aggressive, domineering and a bully to smaller nations”.

📝 Philippines: China is stepping up its efforts to invest in the Philippine provinces of Cagayan and Batanes, which both face Taiwan, reports BenarNews. China has donated money, food packs, laptops, printers and disaster assistance to both provinces, which are relatively close to the strategic Luzon Strait and Bashin Channel, and have also been a recent focus US military activity.

📝 Myanmar: A Chinese naval escort taskforce, comprising a guided-missile destroyer and guided-missile frigate, docked at Thilawa Port in Yangon, Myanmar, on 27 November 2023. China Military Online, the official English-language website of China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA), said the development was a “goodwill visit”, which would see both sides' sailors “conduct professional exchanges, cultural and sports competitions, and mutual visits to each other's military facilities.

📝 Myanmar: The PLA said it would conduct combat training drills on the Chinese side of China’s border with Myanmar, to “test the rapid maneuverability, border sealing and firepower capabilities of locally positioned troops”, according to Global Times. The move comes with an alliance of armed rebel groups engaged in an ongoing offensive against Myanmar junta troops in the north of the country, which borders China.

📝 Singapore: The governments of China and Singapore agreed to upgrade a free trade deal between the two countries. CNA reported the deal would give Singapore’s businesses “greater access to China's markets”, and would also see a new 30-day mutual visa-free travel arrangement between Singapore and China be put in place.

📝 Cambodia: Senior Chinese military officials met with Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet on 4 December 2023, China Military Online reported. According to China Military Online, Manet “expressed gratitude to China for providing timely assistance to Cambodia in times of difficulties and to the Chinese military for its strong support in the modernisation of the Cambodian Army”. The outlet also said it hoped China and Cambodia would “further enhance practical cooperation in various [military fields in the future”.

📝 Malaysia: Malaysia’s government plans to demolish around 100 homes on the outskirts of Kuala Lumpur to clear land as part of a US$16 billion rail project being built under China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), BenarNews reports.

📝 Vietnam: Chinese President Xi Jinping’s visit to Vietnam in mid December 2023 saw both countries agree a range of cooperation deals relating to infrastructure, trade and security, according to Reuters.

 🌏 Regional

The influence of Western far-right sentiment on users in Southeast Asia

A fascinating report featured the Global Network on Extremism and Technology (GNET) charts how far-right content associated with Western countries is being adopted by TikTok users in Indonesia, the Philippines and Malaysia. The report notes how “existing Eurocentric supremacist narratives…are translated and revised according to the sociocultural and political conditions of the [Southeast Asian] countries”. An example is the post above, which features a Totenkopf (Skull and Crossbones) symbol that is normally associated with support for Nazism in Western countries, placed on the face of Suharto, an authoritarian who led Indonesia from the 1960s to the late 1990s.

🇸🇬 Singapore

Cyber attacks hit Singapore’s public health services

Distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks, which flood websites with junk internet traffic to prevent legitimate users from accessing them, hit public health institutions in Singapore, disrupting their internet activity, according to a report by Recorded Future. The attack, which lasted seven hours, made websites, emails, and productivity tools for staff inaccessible. The attacks were unattributed.

🇮🇩 Indonesia

VulzSec attacks Indian websites

The Indonesian hacker group VulzSec claimed it had attacked government, education and private websites in India, in response to India’s bilateral relations with Israel and support for the latter country in its current conflict with Hamas.

Indonesia’s “buzzer” industry of political influence operators

This report by the Influence Industry Project gives an insight into Indonesia’s “buzzer” industry—an industry of influence operators working behind the scenes on digital political campaigns. With Indonesia’s presidential and general elections approaching in February 2024, so-called “buzzers” are set to play an influential role, working for politicians, political backers, and business magnates vested in the election’s outcome. 

🇲🇲 Myanmar

Activists facing increased threats on X

Pro-democracy activists in Myanmar have said that they now face increased cybersecurity and privacy threats on X (formerly Twitter), following Elon Musk’s leadership of the platform, according to a report by ABC. The report notes how there is “increasing space” for military junta trolls to target activists and spread disinformation, with accounts from independent ethnic media organisations also being targeted by hackers. 

🇨🇳 China Influence

(A roundup of links tracking China’s footprint and voice in Southeast Asia)

📝 More than 20 government agencies in Cambodia have been penetrated by Chinese hacker groups linked to China’s Ministry of State Security, according to a report by The Washington Post. 

📝The South China Morning Post reports that Chinese state security chief Chen Yixin visited Cambodia, Thailand and Vietnam, meeting senior government and intelligence chiefs. The trip came amid China’s renewed focus on national security that has seen the passage of a new anti-espionage law and a recent revision to the country’s state secrets law.

📝 Amid Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s trip to Malaysia and the Philippines to boost Japan’s security ties with both countries, The Global Times warned that Kishida’s trip would “not only exacerbate the divisions within the ASEAN bloc, but also escalate tensions in the South China Sea region”.

📝 The Diplomat takes a look at China’s Belt and Road Initiative in Southeast Asia over the next decade, and the future prospects for the initiative for the region.

📝 A report by the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace tracks the impact of competing US and Chinese narratives on Singapore’s foreign policy and domestic cohesiveness. 

🇵🇭 Philippines

Rappler investigates seeding of pro-China content in the Philippines

An investigative report by Rappler has identified a pro-China network on Facebook that Rappler claims has been seeding disinformation for years, formed during former president Rodrigo Duterte’s administration. According to Rappler, “these pro-China posts and commentaries often come from bloggers and websites that use technical language and flaunt their supposed academic credentials to appear credible.”

Philippine military to create new cyber command

The Philippine military is attempting to improve its cyber defences in the face of almost daily online cyber attacks, Reuters reported. The improvements will see a new cyber command created, with recruitment rules for the command relaxed in order to attract better talent from beyond the military. A military spokesman said some of the cyber attacks experienced by the Philippines in recent months had been foreign, but he did not name any specific country.

Philippine govt considers banning TikTok

After the Canadian government enacted a ban on the use of Chinese social media platform WeChat (and on software from the Russian cybersecurity company Kaspersky) on all government devices, a report by the Manila Bulletin claimed the Philippines was considering following suit by potentially imposing restrictions on TikTok. The Philippines' National Security Council is considering a potential ban on TikTok usage among government security personnel, citing apprehensions over cyber espionage and influence operations. The potential ban appears to be related to concerns over TikTok’s parent company, ByteDance, and allegations of that company sharing data with the Chinese government. 

🇲🇲 Myanmar

Doxxing getting worse in Myanmar, says report

A by Index on Censorship focuses on the work of Myanmar Witness, a project that uses open source information to report on human rights abuses in Myanmar. It cites earlier research by Myanmar Witness, which shows how Facebook and Telegram in particular have hosted politically-motivated abuse targeted at women in Myanmar. The abuse has include threats of violence, hate speech and themes of sexual violence. Myanmar Witness claimed that pro-Myanmar military accounts were driving this content. Online users who have publicly mourned the victims of attacks by Myanmar’s military have also been targeted with arrests, threats and physical violence, after they were doxxed by pro-junta groups.

🇲🇲 Myanmar

Ethnic rebels repatriate 1,200 Chinese nationals suspected of cybercrime

The United Wa State Army (UWSA), an armed ethnic rebel organisation operating in  Myanmar’s Shan State (parts of which border China and Thailand), arrested and repatriated more than 1,200 Chinese nationals allegedly involved in criminal online scam operations, AP reports. The UWSA said those arrested were handed over to Chinese police on the Myanmar-China border. The UWSA is the biggest ethnic armed organisation in Myanmar, with an army of approximately 30,000 soldiers and sophisticated weaponry including heavy artillery and helicopters from China, with which it maintains close relations. The military strength of the UWSA means it is able to administer its territory with no interference from Myanmar’s central government.

🇵🇭 Philippines

‘Chinese disinformation operation’ exploits South China Sea dispute

During a Senate committee hearing, the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) suggested that China was targeting the Philippines with a disinformation campaign in relation to the South China sea dispute, CNN Philippines reports. A spokesperson for the PCG said that Filipino journalists had received emails that attempted to divert the attention of Filippinos away from the “aggressive actions” of China in the sea, and toward Vietnam. For decades, the Philippines and China have repeatedly sparred over a disputed region of the sea called the Scarborough Shoal. Tensions have recently spiked after Philippine coastguards cut a floating barrier that had been installed by China at the shoal.

🌏 Regional

Southeast Asian govt targeted in cyber attacks

An unnamed government in Southeast Asia has been targeted by three distinct cyber threat actors, according to research by cyber security firm Palo Alto Networks. The attacks focused on the country’s critical infrastructure, public healthcare institutions, public financial administrators and ministries. The attacks were attributed to three separate cyber threat groups: Stately Taurus (aka Mustang Panda), which is believed to be associated with Chinese interests;  Alloy Taurus (aka GALLIUM), which is believed to be operating on behalf of Chinese state interests; and Gelsemium, which has not yet been linked to a specific state.

Regional initiative aims to curb scams, fake news

A new regional initiative will see Thailand work with Vietnam and Cambodia to curb the threat of call centre scams and fake news, Thaiger reports. This move comes in response to numerous Thai citizens falling prey to such scams, often leading to financial losses or threats to life. In addition, four Thai citizens were recently arrested in Cambodia for their involvement in a call centre scam network. The initiative’s efforts will be focused on increasing public awareness of scam tactics and bolstering border security to deter illegal crossings. Thailand also praised Vietnam for setting up a committee to fight fake news on social media, and urged more information sharing between the two countries as well as across ASEAN to combat false online information.

🌏 Regional

RedHotel targets Southeast Asia’s governments and firms

A cyberespionage group targeting Southeast Asian countries has been identified by the Insikt Group. The new threat group, dubbed “RedHotel,” is deemed to be a Chinese state-sponsored threat targeting academia, aerospace, government, media, telecommunications, and research sectors. According to Insikt, RedHotel’s methods align with other contractor groups linked to China's Ministry of State Security, with dual missions of intelligence gathering and economic espionage.

‘Largest known’ covert influence operation touches Southeast Asia

Meta’s latest adversarial threat report saw it claim to have taken down thousands of accounts and pages that were part of the “largest known cross-platform covert influence operation in the world”. Meta said the operation was linked to Chinese law enforcement and that it was part of a wider, previously identified influence campaign known as “Spamouflage”. The report claimed that those behind the operation had acquired spammy Facebook pages “whose inauthentic following likely came from fake engagement farms around the world, notably in Vietnam”. The operation also impacted a range of well-known social media platforms, but also local platforms, such Kaskus, an Indonesian web forum. Meta said the operation posted positive commentary on China and its Xinjiang province, while criticising the US, Western foreign policies, and taking aim at critics of the Chinese government.

🇻🇳 Vietnam

New Vietnam-based ransomware gang detected

Research by the US-based cybersecurity firm Cisco Talos claimed to have detected a new ransomware gang operating out of Vietnam, targeting victims in English-speaking countries, as well as Bulgaria, China, and Vietnam. The unnamed group, which Cisco Talos claims has been active since early June, is demanding payment in Bitcoin and is threatening to double the ransom if the victim does not pay within three days.

🇵🇭 Philippines

State intelligence agency accused of ‘red-tagging’

The Philippine National Intelligence Coordinating Agency (NICA), which coordinates the country’s domestic and foreign intelligence activities, has been accused by the Philippine Commission on Human Rights (an independent quasi-government agency) of “red-tagging” an LGBTQ+ rights organisation. “Red-tagging” refers to baselessly accusing a group or individuals of being a front for communist insurgent activity. The LGBTQ+ group in question, Mujer, has been providing relief assistance to war-ravaged and disaster-prone communities in the Muslim-dominated south. In recent years, “red-tagging” has been used in the Philippines as a tactic to stifle dissent and crack down on perceived enemies by smearing them with alleged links to the communist rebels.

🇰🇭 Cambodia

Cambodian hackers launch cyber attacks on Thai websites

A group of hackers purportedly from Cambodia claimed to have launched multiple cyber attacks on websites in Thailand throughout July. Their campaign, titled #OpThailand, saw three hacker groups–Anonymous Cambodia, K0lzSec and NDT SEC–launch what appear to have been distributed denial of service (DDoS) attacks against the websites of Thai airports, banks and a range of government and royal institutions, including the Thai Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Thai Ministry of Defence. A post by one of the groups said the attacks were launched because Thailand had “copied” Cambodia culture, by building similar structures to the Cambodian temple of Angkor Wat. 

🇮🇩 Indonesia

Islamist influence network targets controversial Islamic school

The Muslim Cyber Army (MCA), a loosely organised Islamist network of accounts on social media that has previously been identified as spreading hate speech and misinformation, recently highlighted Al Zaytun Islamic school in West Java, which has recently been placed under government investigation for allegedly deviating from Islamic teachings by allowing mixed-gender prayers. MCA published a post on X (formerly Twitter) highlighting a quote from Abu Somad, an Indonesian preacher who has previously been denied entry to Singapore for his extremist views, which claimed the leader of Al-Zaytun was a “Jewish henchman”. MCA has a significant reach of 222k followers on X, with its specific post on Al-Zaytun being viewed almost 23k times.

🇵🇭 Philippines

Report charts evolving disinformation environment

A new report by Internews examines the evolution of disinformation in the Philippines across three electoral cycles in the country. The report notes how disinformation in the country has developed to the point where it is supplied by a “savvy information media-fantasy complex” that produces mainstream and micro-targeted political commentary, entertainment productions, and lifestyle events and programming. It also notes the layered nature of disinformation operations, with disinformation influencers producing content for their fans across platforms while the architects of disinformation architects from the country’s elites “strategize behind the scenes” and receive the most significant political and financial rewards. At the same time, the report notes how efforts to counter disinformation have also evolved, with there now being more interest from civil society to improve the country’s information environment.

🇹🇭 Thailand

Report notes Thai media’s disinformation risks

A report by the Global Disinformation Index (GDI) flagged disinformation risks in Thailand relating to the country’s media environment. The report is based on a study of 33 news domains in Thailand, with nearly half of these domains classed by GDI as having a “high-to-maximum risk” of disinforming their online users. GDI said these sites rarely used clear bylines or identified news sources, and provided only vague attribution policies. The report noted that the sites had significant room for improvement in areas such as ensuring accuracy through fact-checking processes, source identification, byline policies, and outlining funding and editorial guidelines.

Thailand a prime target for cyber attacks, research says

Thailand has been pummelled with cyber attacks in recent months, characterised by assailants using evasive tactics, hacktivism-based attacks and daily barrages of ransomware that has targeted organisations in the country. An investigation by Check Point Research, a cybersecurity firm, claimed that the average number of cyber-attacks on organisations in Thailand was almost double the average rate globally and slightly higher than the average within Southeast Asia over the past six months. The firm said Thai organisations were attacked 2,388 times per week on average during the last six months, compared with 2,375 attacks per week in the rest of Southeast Asia.

🌏 Regional

China exploiting influence-for-hire industry in Southeast Asia, says report

An investigation by the Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI) claims to provide new evidence of an influence-for-hire industry operating in Southeast Asia, linked to the Communist Party of China (CCP). The report suggests the CCP is using inauthentic accounts on social media that are linked to transnational criminal organisations, to spread disinformation campaigns. It traces a network of CCP-linked fake accounts that have promoted the Warner International Casino, based in northern Myanmar near the border with China’s Yunnan Province. The casino has reportedly been operated by overseas gang members who were smuggling Chinese citizens into Myanmar to participate in illegal gambling.

ASPI notes how the CCP has a history of engaging with criminal organisations to attain its political goals, and says that it is entirely possible that elements of China’s security services are opportunistically acquiring inauthentic accounts from criminal networks such as Warner International, to reinforce their covert influence operations online. Another explanation, according to ASPI, is that the CCP’s security agencies are expanding their outsourcing of private contractors who they employ to maintain the CCP’s global information operations.

Indonesia

Indonesian spies, police using Pegasus spyware, claims whistleblowing platform

An investigation by IndonesiaLeaks, a whistleblower platform, has revealed indications that Indonesian intelligence agencies and police organisations have been using Israeli-made spyware in Indonesia since at least 2018. The spyware, known as Pegasus, has been developed by the NSO Group, an Israeli cyber intelligence firm. The technology is known within the cybersecurity industry as “zero-click spyware” and is highly invasive, capable of hacking a target’s device clandestinely without the target having to answer a call or click on a link, making the spyware difficult to trace. According to IndonesiaLeaks’ investigation, published on 12 June 2023, Indonesia’s State Intelligence Agency (BIN) and National Police were among institutions in Indonesia that were using the technology. NSO Group has previously courted controversy by reportedly selling its technology to authoritarian regimes in Europe and the Middle East.

Indonesian hacktivists target websites in Cambodia

VulzSec Team, a purported group of Indonesian hacktivists, have targeted websites in Cambodia with cyber attacks, starting on 19 June 2023. The attacks saw the group claim to have leaked data from Cambodia’s Ministry of Labour and Vocational Training and from car manufacturer Toyota’s Cambodia branch. VulzSec’s reasons for the attacks are unclear, with the group stating, “They [Cambodia] tried to attack our country without any definite and clear reasons. If this continues, we will not hesitate to destroy the country's defense system EASILY.”

Thailand

Thai activists claim govt, military, used Pegasus to hack their mobile devices

In Thailand, two activists filed a lawsuit that accused nine Thai state agencies of using Pegasus spyware to infiltrate their mobile devices during political unrest in the country almost three years ago. The activists, law reform advocate Yingcheep Atchanont and human rights lawyer Arnon Nampa, named Thailand’s Office of the Prime Minister, the Royal Thai Police, the Digital Economy and Society Ministry and the three branches of the military in the lawsuit. The alleged device hacking took place amid pro-democracy protests in Thailand that demanded the resignation of Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha and reforms of several institutions, including the monarchy. 

Regional

ASEAN approach to fighting disinformation required, says report

A report in the Bangkok Post on 6 June 2023 noted how disinformation remained rife in Thailand’s media environment, weeks after the country held a general election. The report noted that in the aftermath of the election, the “top disinformation items” had been narratives concerning: 

• Alleged US efforts to set up a military base in Thailand 

• A bid to seek the independence of Thailand’s three southern border provinces (where a low-level Malay-Muslim insurgency has rumbled on for years) 

• That Thailand’s next government would oppose China 

• That there were plans to send migrant workers in Thailand back to their home countries.

The Bangkok Post report called for a regional approach to combating misinformation and disinformation, and noted that the region’s political and economic bloc, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), would likely soon agree on guidelines to combating false information in the media at a summit in September.

Chinese economic and diplomatic influence in Southeast Asia is growing, claims report

The Economist notes that while some Southeast Asian countries are suspicious of China’s motives in the region, and its bullying of countries with its sheer economic weight, few are willing to separate themselves from China economically, as many of the supply chains that drive the growth of Southeast Asian countries flow through China. The report cites a study by the Lowy Institute, which says China’s influence in Southeast Asia has increased, particularly in terms of trade links and diplomatic activity, while US influence has declined, losing influence with Brunei, Indonesia and Malaysia, but retaining it in the Philippines and Singapore. 

Foreign ministries in Southeast Asia targeted in Chinese cyber attack, says Mandiant

Mandiant, a Google-owned cyber security firm, claimed on 15 June 2023 that Chinese spies had exploited a vulnerability in email security provider Barracuda Networks, allowing the attacker to send emails containing malicious file attachments and gain access to targeted organisations’ devices and data. Some of the targets included foreign ministries in Southeast Asia.

CPP mouthpiece portrays China as ally of Southeast Asia

A report in the Global Times, a mouthpiece of the Chinese Communist Party (CPP), said that the US had recently sent the aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan into the South China Sea “in an obvious demonstration of US strength that aims to raise tensions in the region against China”. The report, published on 15 June 2023, accused the US of “rallying up gangs in the South China Sea - now the Philippines in particular - to gain footholds for its naval and aviation forces and hold provocative joint exercises that negatively impact peace and stability in the region.” The media outlet contrasted the alleged presence of the US vessel with a Chinese naval vessel, Qi Jiguang, which it claimed was a “non-combat vessel” that was on a “tour of peace and friendship” in Southeast Asia, visiting Vietnam, Thailand, Brunei, and the Philippines. The Global Times report is part of a CPP overt online influence campaign to portray itself as an ally of Southeast Asia, while painting the US as meddling in the region.

Philippines

Marcos move to launch ‘information literacy campaign’ criticised

Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has launched a “media and information literacy campaign” that he said will be digital and “youth-oriented”, according to a report in Rappler on 19 June 2023. The president said he would be putting access to government information at the core of his government’s aims in this area. Marcos’ move has drawn particular criticism, given that he is believed to have benefitted significantly from years of misinformation and disinformation before and during the 2022 presidential campaign, with Marcos himself making several false claims, including one that said he had a degree from Oxford University when in reality he was awarded a “special diploma”.

Fact-checking organisation receives death threats

VERA Files, a non-profit fact-checking organisation in the Philippines, has received death threats after it published a statement of Senator Ronald Dela Rosa that said recent comments of former President Rodrigo Duterte about dealing with policemen involved in the drugs trade were made out of frustration. VERA Files said Dela Rosa’s comments “run counter to Duterte’s pronouncements during his presidency when he declared he would kill rogue cops involved in illegal drugs.” The death threats included images of two men with assault rifles. Dela Rosa served as chief of the Philippine police under the Duterte administration. VERA Files previously claimed to have been harassed by Duterte’s office, which reportedly listed VERA Files as an organisation that was coordinating efforts with foreign actors, leading to VERA Files being targeted with online hate. 

🇲🇲 Myanmar

Online campaign to encourage Tatmadaw defections 

An NGO seeking to encourage defections from Myanmar’s military (Tatmadaw) has published a series of graphics that set out “rules of behaviour for those engaged in armed conflict”. The NGO, called People’s Goal, claims to be a Myanmar-based organisation founded by Tatmadaw defectors. The organisation says it supports soldiers who have defected and their families. On 9 May 2023, it published 10 graphics via its accounts on social media, with each graphic carrying a different message, including calls not to attack civilians, respecting prisoner rights, not committing summary executions, not looting and not taking hostages. 

The timing of the campaign is of note, given that it follows reports that the Tatmadaw allegedly used a thermobaric bomb in an attack on a village of Pa Zi Gyi in April 2023. The bomb creates a fireball, sucking oxygen out of the air. Approximately 168 people are thought to have died in the blast, including young children. Human Rights Watch claimed the Tatmadaw’s alleged use of the bomb was designed to create “maximum deaths” in a civilian area. In this context, the online campaign by People’s Goal appears aimed at attempting to encourage further defections from the Tatamdaw.

Chinese state media cover foreign minister’s visit to Myanmar

The visit to Myanmar of Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang was highlighted in a series of reports from Chinese state media outlets on 3 May 2023. During the visit, Qin met General Min Aung Hlaing, the head of Myanmar’s military government. The reports struck a positive tone, highlighting how the countries would deepen cooperation in fields such as border security and anti-fraud measures, and how China respected Myanmar’s sovereignty.

Qin Gang is the highest-ranking Chinese official to meet Min Aung Hlaing since the latter’s power grab two years ago in a military coup. Qin’s visit underlines China’s continuing support for the internationally isolated Tatmadaw, highlighting China’s ongoing influence in Myanmar.

Claim, counterclaim swirl around attack on ASEAN convoy

An ASEAN humanitarian convoy carrying Indonesian and Singaporean diplomats was attacked in Myanmar’s eastern Shan state on 7 May 2023. The convoy was reportedly en route to visit the Pa-O National Liberation Army (PNLO) Liaison Office to discuss aid for displaced people, when it was caught in gunfire in Hsi Hseng township.

The Pa-O National Organization (PNO), which is affiliated with the Tatmadaw, blamed the attack on the PNLO, which responded by claiming it had no reason to attack the convoy because it was carrying PNLO officials. A statement from Myanmar’s National Unity Government (NUG), the country’s government-in-exile, claimed pro-junta militias were to blame for the attack.

🇵🇭 Philippines 

Govt task force leverages mainstream media to promote anti-NPA narrative

The National Taskforce to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC), a Philippine government body, promoted a report by Asia Sentinel regarding the purported demise of the New People’s Army (NPA), on 26 May 2023. The theme of the report suggested the NPA’s armed capabilities had been degraded by Philippine military offensives, the death of senior leadership figures, and the work of NTF-ELCAC, which it said had convinced some NPA militants to lay down their weapons. 

Formed in 2018, NTF-ELCAC has been a key part of waging the Philippine government’s information war against the communist rebels, in a bid to prevent them from recruiting more young people to their cause. The NTF-ELCAC’s activities have drawn criticism for so-called “red-tagging” - the practice of labelling someone a communist. Some reports have claimed the NTF-ELCAC has been too aggressive in this regard, falsely accusing journalists, activists, community leaders, and politicians of being involved in the NPA, sometimes as a means of quashing political rivals. NTF-ELCAC’s leveraging of the Asia Sentinel report highlights how the government body is attempting to use all means of online information at its disposal, in this case by leveraging mainstream media reports, to spread anti-communist influence campaigns.

🇹🇭 Thailand 

Former leader Thaksin alleges ‘information operations’ at play in election

Former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra blamed his party’s shortcomings in the country’s recent general election on “information operations”, but did not give further information on who he thought was behind such alleged operations. Thaksin’s comments followed the election performance of the opposition Move Forward Party, the top-vote getter in the recent election, a return that bested the performance of Thaksin’s own opposition party, Pheu Thai. According to some reports, Move Forward leaned heavily on social media platforms such as TikTok to capture younger voters. TikTok itself has received criticism in the US for being a platform for China to further its information operations, although there is no concrete evidence to suggest China influenced Thailand’s recent election.

Regional

Authoritarianism and generative AI in Southeast Asia

A report on 9 May 2023 highlighted how authoritarian regimes in Southeast Asia may use generative AI, such as ChatGPT, to further their objectives. The report noted that while such technology may be used for more “mundane” tasks, such as writing government policy papers, it is likely to offer opportunities for government ministries and propagandists to produce “endless reams of AI-written content”, giving authoritarian regimes in the region the ability to flood their populations with more state propaganda. The report also notes that this may give regimes even more reason to crack down on independent news outlets that attempt to provide a counter to AI-generated government propaganda.

‘Dark Pink’ hacker group returns to target Southeast Asia

A hacker group known as “Dark Pink” has launched further cyber attacks on targets in Southeast Asia in recent months, according to report by the Singapore-based cybersecurity firm Group-IB.

Dark Pink is an advanced persistent threat (APT) group, which means it is capable of perpetrating sophisticated, undetected cyber attacks designed to infiltrate an organisation and steal sensitive data. APT groups tend to be well-funded, comprising teams of experienced cybercriminals who attack high value targets. To date, Dark Pink has not been linked to any countries or previously known hacking groups.

According to Group-IB, Dark Pink gains access to its victims’ networks through “spear-phishing”, in which it creates malicious emails designed appear as if they are from a trusted sender. The emails may contain a malicious link or attachment, which when opened, allows the attacker to steal the login credentials of the victim and gain access to the victim’s network.

Recent attacks by Dark Pink have seen it target an Indonesian government agency in April 2023, a Brunei government ministry in January 2023, and a non-profit organisation in Vietnam in December 2022. Earlier in 2022, it targeted a government body in Indonesia, a government ministry in Cambodia, and military bodies in Thailand, the Philippines and Malaysia. Dark Pink appeared to use spoofed documents on the rice trade to lure in victims.

Group-IB said Dark Pink remains a threat, and that the group continues to update its existing tools to remain undetected. The hacker group is also thought to have targeted an educational institution in Belgium and a government ministry in Bosnia.

🇹🇭 Thailand

Research institute warns of state-sponsored disinformation threat to upcoming election

A new report by the Asia Centre, a Bangkok-based research institute, has warned of the threat of information operations targeting Thailand's upcoming general election, set for 14 May 2023. The report notes four ways in which state-sponsored information operations are likely to impact the upcoming election:

• Dissemination of one-sided, pro-establishment campaigns that defend the government’s performance and policies, the military, and the monarchy.

• Harassment of those who hold alternative political views, or who may be marginalised candidates, such as women, members of the LGBTQ community, or ethno-religious minorities.

• Spreading of disinformation to distort the election process by discrediting opposition parties.

• Use of disinformation to further divide a Thai society that is already polarised between pro-royal, pro-establishment groups and reformists who argue that the royalty's role in Thai politics must be limited. This tactic seeks to widen divisions to gain more votes, through focusing on topics such as abolishing the monarchy.

The report notes different types of actors that it claims are involved in spreading IO in Thailand:

• The Thai Army, which the report claims uses IO to discredit “dissidents, politicians, activists, academics, influencers, and human rights defenders who oppose the establishment.”

• Army-directed private companies that run “white wing” IO that promote the government, army and monarchy, and “black wing” IO that attack and devalues dissidents.

• Volunteers known as “Jit Arsa”, who are individuals that support the establishment through spreading disinformation without payment, using content produced by the army or the private firms mentioned above.

• Foreign state interference from China and Russia, in the sense that both countries "interfere" will Thai domestic politics through endorsing the pro-establishment views of the government.

Russian 'disinformation outlet' accuses US of meddling in upcoming election

New Eastern Outlook (NEO), a Russian media outlet that has been labelled a "disinformation outlet" by the US government, published a report on 16 March 2023 that accused the US of interfering in the upcoming Thai election, and suggested the US was attempting to mould Thailand into an "anti-China proxy".

The report said the US saw the election as an "opportunity to remove the current circles of power and replace them with opposition parties they have supported for years" in a bid to "rebalance" Thailand away from China's sphere of influence. NEO claimed the US favoured Pheu Thai, the main opposition party, and Move Forward, another opposition party.

The outlet also claimed that if these parties were unsuccessful at the polls, unnamed "US-funded organisations" would try to overturn the election results violently and destabilise Thailand.

The US government claims NEO is run by Russia's Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR). In March 2022, the outlet was sanctioned by the US Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), which described NEO as a "pseudo-academic publication of the Russian Academy of Science’s Institute of Oriental Studies that promotes disinformation and propaganda focused primarily on the Middle East, Asia, and Africa.”

🇵🇭 Philippines

Military rejects rumours of communist rebel attacks

The Philippine Army in Samar Province, Eastern Visayas, said claims that the New People's Army (NPA) was planning to attack malls, churches, markets and other targets were “black propaganda orchestrated by enemies of the state to attract support from sympathisers and instil fear in the populace,” according to a report by the Philippine government’s news agency on 13 April 2023. The claims reportedly featured in a social media message. A statement by Philippine Army's 8th Infantry Division urged the public not to share the message, which it described as "disinformation".

🇮🇩 Indonesia

Information battle over clash between military and separatists

Indonesia's military rejected claims by Papuan separatists that they had killed nine soldiers who had been attempting to free a New Zealand hostage held by the militants, BenarNews reported on 17 April 2023. A military spokesman said the claims from the militant group, known as the West Papua National Liberation Army (TPNPB), were, “Very wrong, misleading. The names of the troops who have regrouped…proved that the information was fake news.”