Following Swatch’s controversial ad campaign, online outrage erupted almost overnight. Mentions of the brand on X spiked by more than 24,000% in just two days, with thousands of posts condemning the ad as racist and culturally insensitive. However, what appeared to be a wave of public anger wasn’t entirely authentic.
Cyabra’s analysis uncovered coordinated activity that magnified real frustration into a viral storm. Dozens of accounts shared identical language, hashtags, and timing patterns, producing over 1.3 million potential views.
Cyabra's analysis of the boycott targeting five major U.S. retailers found inauthentic accounts padding volume and hopping between brands, without manufacturing the underlying anger.
Cyabra found that fake accounts driving stock market conversations grew 4 percentage points in 2025, with coordinated networks manipulating investor sentiment through both negative and promotional narratives.
Cyabra's analysis, in collaboration with Onclusive, uncovered coordinated inauthentic activity behind several of the World Cup 2026's most viral controversies, from ticket scams to false claims about competing teams.
