13/07/2026
Foreign Information Manipulation and Interference (FIMI) is often discussed in terms of narratives, online campaigns, and digital platforms. Yet its most significant consequences are frequently experienced at a human level: changes in behaviour, reduced participation in public life, loss of trust, and increasing social fragmentation. Understanding these consequences is essential for designing responses that are not only effective but also capable of protecting fundamental rights.
This is the objective of Deliverable D3.4 – Report on Diaspora Communities’ Case Studies: the Social and Human Rights Law Perspective on the Effects of Information Suppression, one of the final outputs of Work Package 3 of the RESONANT project.
The report represents the culmination of the work carried out throughout WP3. Rather than introducing new empirical research, it consolidates and interprets the evidence collected in the previous deliverables, creating a comprehensive framework that links behavioural observations with legal analysis and policy development.
Bringing together behavioural and legal research
D3.4 builds directly upon two previous RESONANT deliverables.
The first, D3.2 – Behavioural Analysis, explored how members of six diaspora communities experience and respond to FIMI in their everyday lives. Through thematic, hermeneutical and psychological analysis of interviews, the research identified recurring behavioural patterns that emerged across different communities. These included strategic silence, recalibration of trust, increased reliance on closed communication networks, selective verification of information, reduced civic participation, and growing concerns about surveillance and intimidation.
The second, D3.3 – Report on Awareness and Preparation in Host Countries to Stem FIMIs Against Diaspora Communities, examined the legal and institutional frameworks available to respond to those harms. It analysed European and national legislation covering data protection, platform governance, criminal and civil law, anti-discrimination, and human rights protection, while also assessing the preparedness of public authorities and legal practitioners.
D3.4 integrates these two perspectives into a single analytical framework. It examines how observable behavioural consequences correspond to legally protected interests and fundamental rights, and evaluates whether existing legal instruments are capable of providing effective protection.
From behavioural effects to human rights
A central contribution of the report is the systematic translation of behavioural evidence into legally meaningful categories.
Rather than considering FIMI simply as a problem of false information, D3.4 analyses how manipulation campaigns generate concrete harms affecting individuals, communities and
democratic participation. These harms include reputational damage, psychological pressure, privacy violations, community fragmentation, collective stigmatisation, reduced civic engagement, and the erosion of trust in public institutions.
The report demonstrates that many of these effects interfere directly with fundamental rights recognised under European and international law, including privacy and data protection, dignity, equality and non-discrimination, freedom of expression, freedom of association, and democratic participation.
By framing behavioural consequences as legally relevant harms, D3.4 creates a bridge between empirical social research and legal analysis, offering a common language through which behavioural scientists, legal practitioners and policymakers can interpret the impact of FIMI.
Identifying where protection falls short
A substantial part of the deliverable is devoted to analysing the limitations of current legal and institutional responses.
The report distinguishes between different categories of gaps.
Some are structural, where existing legal frameworks were never designed to address collective, cumulative or transnational forms of information manipulation.
Others are operational, where appropriate legal instruments exist but remain difficult to access because of limited awareness, procedural complexity, evidentiary burdens, slow response times or insufficient coordination among institutions.
The analysis also highlights cross-border and jurisdictional challenges, recognising that FIMI campaigns frequently operate across multiple countries and digital platforms, making attribution and enforcement particularly difficult.
Finally, D3.4 examines the specific vulnerabilities affecting diaspora communities, including language barriers, limited trust in institutions, socio-economic constraints and continued exposure to actors operating from countries of origin.
Taken together, these findings demonstrate that improving protection against FIMI requires more than adopting new legislation. Greater accessibility, institutional coordination, awareness and capacity-building are equally important.
From gap analysis to practical recommendations
Building upon this assessment, the report develops a comprehensive set of recommendations organised into three complementary areas.
The first focuses on legal and regulatory improvements, encouraging more effective interpretation and application of existing legal frameworks, particularly in cases involving repeated campaigns, collective harms and indirect effects.
The second addresses procedural and institutional reforms, including stronger coordination mechanisms, improved investigative capacity, better access to platform data, and enhanced support for vulnerable communities.
The third focuses on community protection and victim support, recognising that resilience depends not only on legal remedies but also on trusted support channels, psychosocial assistance, media literacy and stronger community organisation.
Together, these recommendations provide practical guidance for European institutions, national authorities, regulators, civil society organisations, platforms and diaspora communities.
Supporting the next phase of RESONANT
Beyond its immediate analytical contribution, D3.4 plays an important role in the overall architecture of the RESONANT project.
The report provides direct inputs for Work Package 4, where the project’s methodological framework and operational handbook are being developed. In particular, D3.4 identifies behavioural indicators, harm patterns and legal considerations that can be translated into practical warning elements, detection methodologies and assessment tools for future FIMI monitoring systems.
By connecting empirical evidence, legal analysis and operational recommendations, D3.4 helps ensure that future methodologies are not only technically robust, but also socially informed, legally grounded and respectful of fundamental rights.
Ultimately, the report demonstrates that responding effectively to FIMI requires understanding both how manipulation changes people’s behaviour and how institutions can better protect those affected. It represents the final synthesis of RESONANT’s research under Work Package 3 and provides an essential foundation for the project’s final operational outputs.
Organisation / Author: FONDAZIONE FORMIT