Attacking NGO Research with Pseudoscience

Abstract

Online attacks and harassment have increasingly targeted NGOsduring the past few years. In this paper, we studied a recent disinformation campaign targeting Amnesty International and Citizen Lab Pegasus spyware research. We analyzed seven non-peer-reviewed reports published on ResearchGate claiming to scientifically prove Pegasus research unreliable. We identified five common claims in the reports and established all based on logical fallacies. Moreover, we identified multiple pseudoscience techniques used in the campaign, such as conspiracy theories, pretencing scientific support, and fierce attacks on legitimate scientists.