EU Probes Russian Disinformation in October 17 Riots

European regulators are investigating the role of Russian disinformation and social media in the October 17 riots, examining whether foreign actors amplified the violence that erupted during cost-of-living protests in France, Belgium, and northern Italy. Pro-Russian and far-right accounts spread violent and sometimes deceptive videos, some falsely presented as filmed in France, amassing hundreds of thousands of views. The European Commission has met with French authorities and expects platforms like X not to amplify the unrest through their algorithms. The protests drew between 550,000 and 800,000 people, with over 3,000 shops looted and more than 2,500 arrests. French parliamentary reports have long warned of Russian interference, and a February decree strengthened the Viginum service tasked with detecting foreign digital interference.