ISLAMABAD: Indian intelligence agency, the Research and Analysis Wing’s (RAW), linked social media disinformation campaign targeting Pakistan has been exposed through revelations made by a digital marketing service provider linked to RAW.
Speaking during an interview with ARY News, a facilitator of RAW said that many individuals and businesses purchase digital marketing tools and services to improve the performance of their social media accounts.
According to the RAW operative, clients approach his company to promote videos and products, while the company provides services that improve the health of their social media accounts.
🚨Indian-backed network exposed: individual spreading anti-Pakistan news on funding from an Indian agency arrested. Indian agent’s links were also traced to proscribed JAAC. Senior anchor Waseem Badami held a conversation with Indian agent. pic.twitter.com/E4gUw2EvIy
— Mir Muhammad (@Mirpak5) July 25, 2026
The RAW operative said that his digital marketing company also helps brands increase their follower counts and provides services to boost followers, views, and overall account performance for clients seeking greater online engagement.
The RAW facilitator revealed that the digital marketing operation uses the Stripe payment gateway to receive payments from abroad into Pakistan.
The operative explained that the platform allows connections with banks in different countries. Clients provide their social media account details and other information, after which automated bots are deployed.
The RAW facilitator said that the bots are instructed to increase the views of specific social media accounts and begin working immediately.
He said they generally do not pay attention to the content published by clients. However, the RAW operative said that in March a client approached the company and purchased several packages for views and likes.
The RAW operative said that 15 days later the same client returned to buy additional packages, placing orders worth approximately Rs. 3.6 million in total. The orders covered likes, views, and posting services across multiple social media platforms, the operative said.
The RAW facilitator said that after carrying out extensive work for the client, Pakistani institutions contacted him and questioned him about the activity.
During the investigation, he said, officials showed him the content that had been promoted through his company’s services. According to his account, the entire material was anti-state in nature and included various posts concerning Pakistan’s military and the public.
He further revealed that the client’s posts promoted a negative narrative, including claims that people were being subjected to oppression.
The facilitator also said that while a virtual private network (VPN) can conceal an internet protocol (IP) address, the device being used still leaves a digital footprint.
He said the client first contacted him in March 2026, and that investigators presented the relevant material to him about 20 days ago.
He added that the client purchased a significant number of views through the company for content relating to the people of Kashmir and the banned Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC).
According to the RAW facilitator, he has provided all of the client’s details to the relevant Pakistani authorities.
Indian sponsored Joint Action Committee activist caught red-handed
Pakistan’s Information Minister Attaullah Tarar on Sunday said investigations by the country’s security agencies had uncovered an India-linked digital propaganda network involving an arrested digital marketing service provider connected to the banned Joint Awami Action Committee (JAAC) in Azad Jammu and Kashmir.
The minister said investigators had gathered evidence showing that social media campaigns promoting anti-Pakistan content and activities related to the banned group were financed from India.
#Live: Minister for Information and Broadcasting @TararAttaullah‘s important statement@MoIB_Official #RadioPakistan #News
https://t.co/UFzxv2ynIk— Radio Pakistan (@RadioPakistan) July 26, 2026
Addressing a press conference in Islamabad, Tarar said the investigation had exposed a coordinated digital disinformation operation aimed at spreading anti-state narratives, targeting Pakistan’s sovereignty, state institutions, the armed forces and the Chief of Army Staff through organised social media campaigns.
Indian funding for JAAC social media campaign
The minister said a person providing digital marketing services had been arrested by Pakistan’s security agencies some time ago and that subsequent investigations revealed links between the JAAC activist’s activities and India.
Tarar said investigators found that payments for promoting and amplifying anti-Pakistan content on social media originated from India through digital payment gateways.
He said the investigation established that social media campaigns related to the Joint Awami Action Committee were financed from across the border.
“All the payments for the Joint Action Committee’s social media content were coming from India, and this has been established through technical data,” Tarar said.
He added that authorities had recovered WhatsApp conversations between the arrested activist and an Indian operator discussing payments, targeted audiences and account details.
The minister said that payments were deliberately transferred in small amounts to avoid detection by financial monitoring systems.
Tarar said investigators also uncovered an extensive network of bot farms used to spread misinformation and amplify anti-state content.
He said that the network promoted propaganda targeting Pakistan, its government, state institutions, the armed forces and the Army Chief.
The minister said forensic investigators had also traced the origin of several online accounts to India despite the use of virtual private networks (VPNs).
“When a VPN masks a user’s location, the device itself can still be identified during forensic analysis. That is how these India-based accounts were detected,” he said.
Tarar added that authorities were continuing to examine digital payment gateways used in the operation.
