(TibetanReview.net, Apr28’26) – A China-linked online influence campaign attempted to undermine elections for the Tibetan parliament-in-exile for which polling was held over the weekend (Apr 26) in some 27 countries, but was largely ineffective, reported therecord.media Apr 27, citing researchers a the Digital Forensic Research Lab (DFRLab).
DFRLab has said the operation identified by it was part of Spamouflage, a long-running influence network linked to Beijing.
China’s state media also targetted the exile Tibetan elections, with globaltimes.cn Apr 7 mocking as well as criticising them, citing contents of the kind posted in the Spamouflage fake accounts.
The DFRLab researchers have found that despite deploying increasingly sophisticated tactics, including AI-generated images, the campaign largely failed to gain traction.
The report said the DFRLab researchers identified 90 Facebook accounts and 13 Instagram profiles tied to the Spamouflage campaign. The accounts were stated to have pushed several narratives, most commonly personal attacks against the already re-elected Sikyong Mr Penpa Tsering by portraying him as corrupt and power-hungry.
Penpa Tsering won re-election as the Sikyong (executive head) of the Central Tibetan Administration by winning 61.03% of the votes in the preliminary poll held on Feb 21, thus avoiding a final poll which was therefore held only for the 45-member Tibetan Parliament in Exile on Apr 26.
Other posts were stated to have attempted to cast doubt on the legitimacy of the elections themselves, amplifying internal debates within the Tibetan diaspora and portraying the vote as manipulated.
Spamouflage accounts were stated to have amplified these narratives by repeatedly sharing posts across the network and inserting them into existing discussions within Tibetan Facebook groups. The accounts also reportedly attempted to broaden their reach by posting in multiple diaspora groups.
But the researchers have found that most posts received little or no authentic engagement — likely because the operation relied on ordinary-looking Facebook profiles with limited reach rather than established pages with more followers.
The activity was stated to continue a broader pattern of Spamouflage targeting Tibetan organizations online. The report noted that in 2025, the network circulated accusations of corruption against the International Tibet Network, a global coalition of Tibet-related non-governmental organizations, with some of the same accounts having participated in earlier campaigns dating back to 2022.
The network was stated to frequently repurposes the same accounts to promote narratives targeting other countries. For example, researchers have found that some profiles recently shifted to content about the Philippines, while Spamouflage campaigns have also targeted the United States, Taiwan’s 2024 elections and Japanese politics.
DFRLab is part of the Atlantic Council which promotes constructive leadership and engagement in international affairs based on the Atlantic Community’s central role in meeting global challenges. DFRLab is a first of its kind organization with technical and policy expertise on disinformation, connective technologies, democracy, and the future of digital rights and it was incubated at the Atlantic Council in 2016.