Framing Western technology as “digital colonialism”

What it claims

Western governments and technology companies are labelled “digital colonisers”, with their cooperation cast as a mechanism for domination, dependency and attacks on other states. References to cyberattacks, intelligence gathering and private contractors are inflated into an image of a unified system of digital domination. Russia and BRICS are simultaneously portrayed as advocates of an equal multipolar order.

Target audience

Examples (paraphrased)

We paraphrase rather than quote: propaganda's exact wording is built to spread, so we carry the claim and not the craft. Each example cites the post it came from.

• Western states and their technology companies use digital systems to subjugate other countries, obtain their data and launch attacks.

  Russian Embassy in the UK, 25 Sept 2026 · Archived copy

• Western elites seek to preserve colonial dominance through sanctions, pressure, interference and the instigation of conflicts.

  Russian Embassy in the UK, 19 Sept 2026 · Archived copy

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Goal

Encourage low-trust Britons to treat cooperation between Western governments and technology companies as proof of colonial domination rather than assessing specific claims separately.

Techniques used

• Causal OversimplificationCooperation between technology developers and state bodies is presented as evidence of a single system of dependency, espionage and attacks.
• Black-and-White Fallacy / DictatorshipThe West is divided off as a force supposedly seeking domination, while Russia and BRICS are cast as a camp of equal cooperation.

The real grievance it exploits

The narrative draws on British concerns about data protection, cyberattacks and the influence of large technology companies. The posts themselves do not identify a specific British grievance, instead invoking a broader image of Western power.

How to counter

• Technique exposure: Separate verifiable claims about particular cyberattacks from the broad label of “digital colonialism”. Combining different risks into one scheme does not demonstrate that all technology ties serve the same purpose.

Sources (all time)

• Russian Embassy in the UKTier 23,903 subscribers
  2 posts · 19–25 Sept 2026

  • 25 Sept · Archived copy
  • 19 Sept · Archived copy