As Chinese ships fired water cannons at Philippine vessels in the South China Sea in November 2021, Beijing’s then-ambassador to Manila asked Filipinos on Facebook to share their favorite things about China. Among the hundreds of gushing responses were three from a young man named “Vince Dimaano.” His comments – like many responding to the Chinese embassy’s posts – weren’t genuine. They came from fake accounts paid for by the diplomatic mission, according to internal documents from a Manila-based marketing agency. The firm, InfinitUs Marketing Solutions, waged a cyber campaign paid for by China to weaken support for Philippine government policy and to sow discord over Manila’s security alliance with the United States, according to a review of the documents and the fake Facebook accounts, as well as interviews with two former company employees and two Philippine officials. The Chinese-owned company also used the fake profiles to amplify anti-American content created by Filipino writers, including some who had received money from Beijing, Reuters found.

Full insight : How China waged an infowar against U.S. interests in the Philippines.