DisInfoHack 2026 Engages Students to Combat Disinformation in Bulgaria

The DisInfoHack 2026 event, held at the GATE Institute of St. Kliment Ohridski University in Sofia, gathered 40 students from over 12 universities to analyze and combat disinformation in Bulgaria. Participants focused on six key areas: elections, wars, ecology, migration, patriotism, and crises, developing solutions to mitigate the impact of disinformation narratives. The initiative is part of the CoDE project, which aims to enhance information resilience through scientific approaches. GATE Institute Director Prof. Sylvia Ilieva emphasized that disinformation is an ongoing process that includes various media formats, complicating countermeasures. The event concluded with presentations of participants' results and recommendations for improving information integrity. The model of DisInfoHack is set to expand to Poland in May 2026. The project has successfully built a collaborative ecosystem for tackling disinformation through partnerships with various academic and technological institutions.

Key Points: • DisInfoHack 2026 involved 40 students from over 12 universities tackling disinformation. • The initiative is part of a broader project aimed at enhancing information resilience in Bulgaria. • Prof. Sylvia Ilieva highlighted the evolving nature of disinformation, including AI-generated content.