Disinformation often fosters distrust in institutions and manipulates public opinion. It serves as a destabilizing weapon of war, with actors deliberately spreading false narratives via social media and other channels to gain strategic advantages. The Embassy of the Czech Republic in cooperation with the American Jewish Committee (AJC) invited ISOC-IL to present its research at a NATO Contact Point seminar on December 1, 2025 for NATO representatives in Israel on the impact of disinformation on military operations. Deputy Heads of Missions from EU Member States were among the 50 participants.
Head of Digital Investigations and Disinformation at the Israel Internet Association (ISOC-IL) Nitsan Yasur opened the seminar by presenting ISOC-IL’s study “Ballistic Fakes: Disinformation and Fact-Checking Efforts during the Israel–Iran War,“ which examined false content in 17 languages disseminated during the war and the activities of fact-checking organizations around the world. It illustrated among other things that in many cases false information aimed to amplify the dimensions of destruction and exaggerate real damage in order to enhance images of a powerful military force. Nitsan also introduced the participants to ISOC-IL’s DRI project (Disinformation Resilience Israel), and his presentation served as the foundation for the rest of the meeting.
ISOC-IL’s Head of Cyber Policy and Academic Relations, Yael Ram, also spoke at the event as part of an expert panel including representatives from the National Cyber Directorate and organizations in the private sector working to advance online security. Yael highlighted the growing role of artificial intelligence in the production of disinformation, and offered potential strategies to counter organized global disinformation campaigns, emphasizing the importance of a holistic, multistakeholder approach to the problem that includes civil society organizations, journalists, media organizations, and fact-checking organizations, while simultaneously strengthening public digital literacy skills to fortify user resilience to disinformation.
ISOC-IL is deeply committed to advancing digital resilience and empowering Israeli society to counter disinformation. For more information or to connect, reach out to us at [email protected]