Indian bot accounts spread misinformation about Valencia floods on X
Automated bot accounts primarily based in India posted misinformation about the October 2024 DANA floods in Valencia, impersonating locals and amplifying false claims about death tolls. The accounts, many verified on X and eligible for revenue sharing, replicated popular tweets including misleading information during the active emergency response.
What happened
From late October 2024, automated or semi-automated bot accounts primarily from India began posting massively in viral conversations about the October 2024 DANA floods in Valencia, Spain, many impersonating Valencia natives and Spanish speakers.
The bot accounts, many of them verified with X's blue checkmark (indicating paid accounts eligible for revenue sharing), replicated popular tweets about the disaster, including some containing false claims such as allegations of over 1,000 dead in a parking garage where Spanish police found no bodies.
Accounts such as @kunwarsa_12, which had never posted about the DANA, Spain, Valencia or Bonaire before October 30, 2024, began publishing in Spanish about the disaster with apparent knowledge of local details they could not possess.
Reported impact
The bot accounts amplified misinformation and hate messages about the floods across X, contributing to confusion and spreading false death toll claims during an active emergency response.
Authentic conversations about the disaster were infiltrated and disrupted by bot replies, with some accounts replicating even satirical posts from real users who mocked the bot activity.
Index analysis
The bot accounts likely operated for financial reward through X's payment system, as verified blue-check accounts can receive revenue based on engagement metrics such as views and replies.
The pattern shows accounts copied successful tweets from other users rather than generating original content, suggesting semi-automated replication workflows rather than genuine commentary.
Governance controls
X users identified the bot activity and could report accounts to the platform for potential suspension, though enforcement was not described in the reports.
Classification
Sources and evidence
This record was researched and written by the Index, based on the following original reporting.