Experts warn of risks for Ukraine due to Telegram propaganda from the channel “Secret Office”

Experts warn of risks for Ukraine due to Telegram propaganda from the channel “Secret Office”

The Telegram channel "Secret Office," which publishes insider information and promotes Kremlin narratives, has gained popularity among Ukrainians due to the information vacuum within the country. Experts shared this assessment in comments to journalists when discussing the influence of anonymous Telegram resources. 

Former Verkhovna Rada MP Ihor Miroshnychenko considers Telegram a key battleground for information influence — both for Ukrainian users and Russians. 

He emphasized that limiting Russia’s influence through technical means alone is impossible.

"Can we eliminate Russian propaganda by banning Telegram? No, it’s impossible," he stated. 

Amid growing interest in channels like "Secret Office," the expert recommends that Ukrainians develop critical thinking and practice information hygiene. 

Miroshnychenko also highlighted the significance of Telegram channels in Russia’s information warfare strategy. 

"Russia has acted for centuries and continues to operate under the same principle: it seeks to influence public opinion and spread its narratives," he stressed. "The information front is not only no less important but perhaps even more critical than the military front." 

In his view, Telegram channels and other information sources have become tools of psychological pressure and demoralization. 

"They penetrate the minds of Ukrainians, and you start thinking the same way as the ’vatniks,’ Soviet nostalgics, and rigid ’Rashists,’" he noted. 

Meanwhile, political strategist Andriy Zolotaryov, head of the "Third Sector" center, believes that the popularity of channels like "Secret Office" stems from the degradation of traditional media and the limited content on television. 

"Print media has effectively been destroyed... Television has been reduced to a single telethon format... An information vacuum arises when authorities try to dictate the public agenda—society seeks alternative spaces: YouTube, Telegram," he said. 

Zolotaryov argues that Telegram has become the most trusted platform among Ukrainians—and this space is actively exploited for information-psychological operations (IPSO) and manipulation through channels like "Secret Office." 

"Naturally, this niche will also be used for IPSO, since Telegram is the only uncensored platform." 

In his opinion, censorship and blocking are ineffective, and official discourse built on emotions and bans only drives audiences away. 

"20th-century approaches will backfire: people won’t trust official information and will seek alternatives. Naturally, the enemy will exploit this," he said. 

At the same time, Zolotaryov is convinced that Ukraine is losing the information war, including on the international stage. 

"We are losing in terms of information. This is noticeable in Europe and the U.S... Obviously, no one in Iowa is watching the unified telethon," he stated. 

Both speakers agree: the popularity of channels like "Secret Office" is rooted in the information vacuum, trust in unofficial sources, and the state’s weak institutional response. Until Ukraine offers its own high-quality informational alternative, Russia will continue using Telegram and other platforms to push destructive narratives into Ukrainian society.