False contents on social media aim to vilify army 

Misleading, false, distorted and partly true information about the Bangladesh Army, the army chief and senior officials of the armed forces has been circulating on social media in a sustained manner.

An analysis by fact-checking organisation Rumor Scanner found that some of the content was created using artificial intelligence (AI) technology.

Military experts and security analysts believe the posts and content, created by mixing fabricated information with real events, may be part of an organised effort to undermine the Army or weaken the state, rather than isolated cybercrime or temporary attempts.

According to Rumor Scanner statistics for the first six months of 2026, it identified 96 pieces of misinformation targeting the Bangladesh Army during the period, compared with 74 in the same period of 2025. This represents an increase of around 30 percent in one year. During the same period, 21 specific pieces of misinformation directly targeting Army Chief General Waker-Uz-Zaman were identified.

Rumor Scanner identified 96 pieces of misinformation targeting Bangladesh Army for the first 6 months of 2026 

In addition to the Army, Rumor Scanner identified 195 pieces of misinformation concerning the armed forces and law-enforcement agencies between January and June this year, around 71 percent higher than during the same period last year. Of these, 86 concerned Bangladesh Police, seven Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB), four Rapid Action Battalion (RAB), and one each concerned the Bangladesh Air Force and Navy.

During the same period, Rumor Scanner identified a total of 3,210 pieces of misinformation in the country. Platform-wise, 2,822 were identified on Facebook, 600 on TikTok, 562 on Instagram and 245 on YouTube. As the same content may have been circulated across multiple platforms, these figures should not be added together to calculate the total number of unique incidents.

Security analysts say the Army has been working with the highest commitment to protect the country’s sovereignty. They said the Army and General Waker-Uz-Zaman demonstrated professionalism and prudence during the crisis on August 5, 2024. After the resignation of the then prime minister, the Army did not take over state power but held meetings with political parties and helped facilitate the formation of an interim government. Security analysts said the decision not to use military force against protesters also helped prevent possible bloodshed.

Fact-checkers have also identified AI-generated content and deepfakes. During the first six months of the year, 38 deepfake pieces of content were identified. Posts and videos mixing false and genuine information about military appointments, promotions or sensitive incidents are rapidly spreading across different platforms.

Some experts believe the purpose of such content may go beyond generating views or engagement and could include attempts to create confusion among the public about the Army and state institutions. Whether any particular individual or group is behind the content, however, requires separate investigation.

Prof Dr Muhammad Sajjad Hossain Siddiqui, Chairman of the Department of Peace and Conflict Studies at Dhaka University, said that damaging the reputation of people such as the army chief, chief justice or president is a criminal act in a closely connected and harmonious society. 

He said spreading defamatory content about individuals associated with national sovereignty, law and order and national prosperity to create instability is deliberate.