Angus Council leader Bill Duff is among those who followed bogus Iran-linked social media accounts sharing pro-Scottish Independence material.
New research has revealed the network of accounts on X – formerly known as Twitter – are linked to the Iranian military.
Despite posing as ordinary Scots, disinformation expert Professor Darren Linvill’s believes the accounts are puppets of the Iranian regime seeking to influence Scottish politics.
His report, titled What’s Hiding Under the Kilt, concludes the pages are probably run by, or on behalf of, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps – Iran’s feared military wing.
More than 80 accounts were responsible for around four per cent of the discussion about independence on X, a figure greater than even the SNP account.
And some of the sham profiles count high-profile politicians among their followers.
Bill Duff, the new leader of Angus Council, was shocked to learn he had been duped when approached by The Courier.
Angus councillor had ‘no idea’
He was listed as a follower of @miagibson1996, one of the accounts suspected of being controlled by Iran.
Mr Duff says it shows the challenges and dangers facing those who use social media.
He told The Courier: “I certainly had no idea about this. If I had I wouldn’t have followed it.
“It’s very difficult for the average person to know the origin of all accounts.
“I would certainly delete this one.”
Researchers ‘impressed’ by campaign
Clemson University’s Professor Darren Linvill reckons anyone can be caught out.
He said: “There is no question that most casual social media users would never stop to think that these accounts were being run by a foreign government, especially if you only look at one post or one account.
“The coordination is only apparent when you look at them as a group, and that’s obviously not how we use social media.
“We were honestly impressed by this campaign.
“It’s genuinely a step up from what we have seen from Iran in past campaigns.”
X was approached for comment.
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