Qatar uses fake accounts to escalate against Arab countries: Oxford Institute

CAIRO - 25 February 2020: The Oxford Institute for Internet at Oxford University issued on Monday a report clarifying that the Qatari Government used fake social media accounts to start an internet war against the Arab countries

According to the report, "Global Information Shading System ... 2019 Global Inventory of Organized Manipulation with Social Media", the Qatari Government used these fake accounts to circulate rumors against Saudi Arabia and some Arab countries.

Freedom House agency has classified Qatar in its annual freedom internet reports as a country without freedom in media outlets.

The agency also reported that Prince Tamimbin Hamed controls all the executive, legislative and judicial powers and that a part of the Qatari people has no political rights;hence they do not receive equal economic opportunities.

In June 2017, a study revealed that 23,000 “fake” Twitter accounts have been created to circulate rumors and post anti-Saudi Arabia tweets, according to tweets by Saud al-Qahtany, the general supervisor of the Saudi Center for Studies and Media Affairs.

He said the accounts in question use certain phrases, such as “pseudo Saudi”, “you are slaves”, and “glorified Tamim” once or more in every six tweets. The users of the account present themselves as Saudi citizens who support the Qatari regime.

A total of 43 percent of the accounts use a profile picture of the Qatari Emir Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani, and nine percent used a picture of the emir and his father Hamad bin Jassim Al-Thani.

Meanwhile, 94 percent of the accounts do not use personal profile pictures, four percent use stolen profile pictures, and two percent of the pictures have not been verified by the study.Of all the accounts in the study, 82 percent used pseudonyms, and the rest have not been verified.

"Using Arabic words that are not used in the Saudi dialect also highlights that the accounts are not genuine,"Qahtani said.

Furthermore, 32 percent of the accounts come from Qatar, 28 percent from Lebanon, 24 percent from Turkey and 12 percent from Iraq.

The said accounts interact regularly with other accounts that call for a revolution in Saudi Arabia or spread rumors -and vice versa-through re-tweeting, likingor replying to one of every six tweets.

Qahtany said this means there is a single administration directing all these accounts.