Highlights:

  • Cyabra identified these accounts as promoting the purchase of Intel shares whenever the stock price experienced a decline, a tactic indicative of efforts to manipulate the company’s stock price, as per their analysis.
  • Cyabra leveraged its artificial intelligence-powered algorithm to scan X for keywords and hashtags linked to Intel, identifying the counterfeit tweets being disseminated.

Recently, a freshly unveiled report from Cyabra Strategy Ltd., a social threat intelligence company, highlighted concerning efforts aimed at influencing Intel Corp.’s stock price on X, the platform formerly referred to as Twitter.

According to the “Intel Stock Manipulation” report, Cyabra researchers discovered that between March 28th and April 4th, approximately 22% of discussions on X related to Intel stock, identified by the keywords “intc” and #intc, were linked to fabricated profiles. Cyabra identified these accounts as promoting the purchase of Intel shares whenever the stock price experienced a decline, a tactic indicative of efforts to manipulate the company’s stock price, as per their analysis.

The disinformation campaign on X allegedly entailed sophisticated coordination, where fake profiles disseminated optimistic but frequently inaccurate sentiments regarding Intel’s stock. On April 4th, fake accounts were posted 67 times, aligning with a 60-cent drop in the Intel stock manipulation campaign, thus “distorting the conversation” about the stock’s decline by falsely endorsing it as a lucrative investment opportunity and urging individuals to buy the stock despite its actual decrease in value.

Cyabra leveraged its artificial intelligence-powered algorithm to scan X for keywords and hashtags linked to Intel, identifying the counterfeit tweets being disseminated. Using the algorithm, Cyabra’s researchers were able to chart the network of fraudulent profiles and monitor their impact across the platform.

The algorithm uncovered that the deceptive posts related to Intel shares reached approximately 16,000 views. The researchers assert that this figure underscores the substantial influence of such campaigns on investor behavior and market dynamics.

The report suggests an imperative for heightened vigilance and collaboration among financial institutions, regulatory bodies, and social media platforms. Unsurprisingly, considering Cyabra’s primary offering, the report emphasizes the need for advanced real-time monitoring tools to identify and analyze manipulative online behaviors. Such tools are crucial for safeguarding the integrity of financial markets.