A network of X accounts is “artificially” amplifying misinformation about Canada’s economy and leadership, according to a report shared with The Logic from digital threat research group Reset Tech.

A co-ordinated campaign from these accounts spread false stories about businesses decamping for the U.S. as a result of Canada’s alleged economic decline, as well as Canadian support for Donald Trump’s goal to annex the country. The network, which is made up of 73 accounts and “likely hundreds more,” shares material from U.S. right-wing sites, as well as Toronto-based Canada Free Press and Montreal-based Post Millennial.

The network was instrumental in spreading a February post from Texas Governor Greg Abbott suggesting Canada was economically subservient to the state, according to the report. The post has more than 37 million views since it was made in early February.

With more than 475,000 followers, the X account belonging to author and conspiracy theorist Naomi Wolf was the most influential on the Musk-owned platform in spreading and amplifying the #51state hashtag, a reference to Trump’s desire to annex Canada. “Wolf reposted content from Canadian anti-vaccine influencer and roofing contractor Joshua Bigger, spreading his claim that ‘Canadians are voting for Trump in their provincial elections,’” the report reads.

A persona known as “Vera Synthetic” used AI-generated material on X, YouTube and TikTok to promote pro-annexation messaging and Trump’s “51st state” narrative, at times posting as many as nine times in one minute, suggesting it is an automated account, the report said.  

The network also focused on the Liberal leadership race, which was won by Mark Carney. Five accounts disseminated more than 28,000 posts through the leadership campaign in February and March, mostly focusing on narratives against Carney.

The X accounts also shared links to RT, a Russian state-owned media entity that the federal government sanctioned in 2022 for actively engaging in Russia’s “global disinformation and influence efforts.” Several of the accounts within the network post more than 500 times a day, according to the Reset Tech report.

“Further analysis of the posting synchronization, cross-platform activity, and interaction patterns is necessary to determine whether this activity is part of a broader foreign influence operation targeting Canada,” the report reads.

Elon Musk’s X, formerly known as Twitter, has been a target for legislators in the European Union, which opened an investigation into the company in 2023. X now faces fines of more than a billion dollars for violating rules governing disinformation and illegal content under the Digital Services Act. The EU is also expected to demand changes to X’s approach to risk management, advertising transparency and data access, among other areas.

Canada has been a target of online ire from the U.S. right since Donald Trump’s first term in 2016, said Queen’s University assistant professor Amarnath Amarasingam, who studies extremist movements. “We’ve always been a kind of warning sign to the far right of what could happen if liberalism and wokeism were allowed to run amok,” Amarasingam said. 

It is highly likely that the X accounts associated with the campaign are bots, or automated accounts programmed to share and amplify certain posts, which are prohibited under X’s terms of use. Yet Amarasingam said it is difficult to prove that the accounts are automated and not the activity of “individuals who are very online.” Nonetheless, he said the vast majority of U.S.-based online disinformation has come from the right.