Vladimir Putin has an army of professional trolls running thousand of fake Twitter and Facebook accounts to flood social media with pro-Russia propaganda. Hundreds of workers are paid ÂŁ500 a month to work exhausting 12-hour shifts bombarding the internet with comments placing Putin in a more favourable light. The trolls work under strict condition which see them banned from talking and even forging friendships with one another. One former worker at the Internet Research Centre - dubbed the Troll Factory - has lifted the lid on how employees must write more than 130 online posts a shift or face the sack. Marat Burkhard explained how the operation, based in modern building in St Petersburg, is opened 24 hours a day and employees often work in teams of three.'One of us would be the 'villain,' the person who disagrees with the forum and criticizes the authorities, in order to bring a feeling of authenticity to what we're doing, he told Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. 'The other two enter into a debate with him -- "No, you're not right; everything here is totally correct."
'We create the illusion of actual activity on these forums.'
Mr Burkhard revealed how he and his fellow trolls got to work after a story broke about US President Barack Obama spitting his chewing gum out in India.
''You need to write 135 comments about this, and don't be shy about how you express yourself,'
Mr Burkhard, reportedly said he was told.