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What can’t be filmed during martial law?

Військовий із розмитим обличчям та Валерій Залужний у військовому однострої, стилізоване зображення

Author: Molfar Intelligence Institute

24.03.2023

Molfar OSINT community prepared a guide for photographers and videographers filming war-related subjects. The article contains photos and text instructions that explain in detail why this or that object is prohibited from filming.

Here is a photo instruction, a checklist, which must be used to check the footage at the editing stage, before publication. The lives of people and the safety of strategic facilities, military equipment, etc. literally depend on the care and responsibility of content makers. This is critical: we are aware of repeated cases of rocket and artillery attacks being adjusted based on recklessly published photos and videos.

Don’t help the enemy! Otherwise, you will be judged and punished as traitors and enemy adjusters!

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What can NOT be filmed during the war?

❗️ The article prepared as part of our support for the Spiv Brativ art group. A simple check of the footage turned into a full-fledged instruction manual for future content makers dealing with military topics. Thank you for your trust!

Military facility with blurred signs
The number of the military unit and the name of the military facility, elements of heraldry, blue plates

This information can be used to find the coordinates of the military’s dislocation, which the enemy can use to launch a missile attack.

Military checkpoint
Checkpoints and military locations

The spread of this information may reduce the security of our military.

An infantry fighting vehicle (IFV) with number and tactical marking
Numbers and markings on military equipment and civilian vehicles parked on the territory of a military facility

The markings can be used to find out to what unit the equipment belongs, and in some cases, to find the coordinates of the military’s deployment.

Fire truck with a number of fire station
Markings on official vehicles of other services, such as firefighters

Using the marks, you can find the coordinates of the military location, firefighters, rescuers, etc.

Man in lifeguard uniform
Faces of employees from other departments, as they can be used to identify the location of the footage
View from the window of the building
View from the window of a military building

There may be atypical buildings in the view from the window that make it easy to identify military locations.

Church with a blurred foreground
Objects on the horizon that can be used to find the location

For example, there is a church on the territory of a military unit that is visible through the fence. This church is an excellent reference point for establishing the geolocation of a military unit.

HIMARS with a blurred background
Equipment that we have in single copies

For example, HIMARS combat vehicles. Or equipment that has objects behind it that can be used to geolocate the vehicle. It is also not allowed to film equipment that has not been officially reported in the media.

Military servicewoman with a blurred face
Faces of the military

If you know a person’s face, you can find their social media, find their name and date of birth on social media, and then get information about their service. If you know which military unit a person belongs to, you can also find out the names of other soldiers on social media. Their pages often contain materials that can help the enemy identify the location of a military unit.

Military man with drawn insignia
Name, rank and insignia of the military unit

The same risk as mentioned above.

Woman soldier with blurred face and mouth
If a person mentions some sensitive information in the video (location, number of equipment, plans, etc.), then in addition to cutting out the sound, you should also paint over the lips (with a black rectangle) because enemies can read information on the lips
Cannon on the territory of a military educational institution
Non-standard objects that can be found by searching for images on the Internet and finding out the location of the military
Accumulation of military equipment
General video plans, where you can calculate the amount of equipment and ammunition: with this information, the enemy can adjust their plans for attack and intelligence
Specific mark
Specific markings on buildings, addresses of buildings: signs can provide information about the location of military personnel in buildings
A working civil enterprise
Still an active state/utility enterprise with employees: there is a risk of de-anonymization and rocket/artillery attack on the facility
Map-scheme of the offensive plan
Documents, plans, and maps with plans: with this information, the enemy can adjust offensive and intelligence plans
Village from a quadcopter
Quadcopter footage of the area near the military’s deployment: such footage can give away the location of the military, armored vehicles, air defense systems, etc.
Drone production
Places of munitions production and customization of equipment, including drones and their explosive components

This can give away the location of the military, adjust enemy offensive and defense plans, and enable enemy propaganda to accuse Ukraine of using weapons prohibited by international law. An example of what NOT to film.

Cannon work in the field
The work of military equipment: the landscape can be used to find out the coordinates of the equipment location and location of military personnel

An example of what NOT to film.

The place where the projectile hit the road
Places of shells and missiles hits

The spread of such materials can provide corrective information for the next enemy attack. An example of what NOT to publish.

Smoke against the sky
The work of air defense systems

The spread of such materials can provide corrective information for the next enemy attacks, including on air defense systems.

If you strictly follow the requirements of this instruction, it will turn out that it is better not to shoot or publish anything related to military topics at all. However, we all understand that photos and videos about the war in Ukraine are the basis of the information warfare. Therefore, please take this instruction as a rule that forces the military to wear body armor and helmets at all times while they are on the battlefield positions. This is not a guarantee of safety, but it does save lives. It’s the same with filming in wartime: even blurred footage can be useful to the enemy. However, if you have complied with the requirements of this instruction, and the potential benefits of publishing your materials outweigh the possible risks, you can safely publish.

👉 You can learn more about the rules of filming military events in the video on the Spiv Brativ YouTube channel.

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