Lithuania’s crisis centre warns of false drone incident claims spreading online

Lithuania’s National Crisis Management Centre (NKVC) has issued a warning about the rapid spread of misleading and fabricated information regarding drone incidents in the country, state broadcaster LRT reports.

In a statement, the NKVC said social media platforms and online spaces are being used to circulate manipulated or AI-generated visual content falsely depicting foreign military drones operating in Lithuanian airspace or their supposed crash sites. Disinformation campaigns have also included claims that no drones were present in Lithuania’s airspace at all, alongside conspiracy theories alleging foreign specialists entered the country to stage provocations.

The centre emphasised that much of this content appears to originate from outside Lithuania, with the apparent goal of influencing public opinion. Such false or decontextualised information risks fuelling panic, undermining trust in official communications, and disrupting the work of institutions and authorities, the NKVC warned.

Officials urged residents to remain vigilant, critically assess information shared in public spaces, and avoid spreading unverified or sensational claims. The public was advised to rely solely on official institutional sources for accurate updates.

The warning follows recent reports of drone-related airspace restrictions in Lithuania’s Utena region, where search operations were conducted after objects disappeared from radar.