Awareness - False Flag

False Flag is the falsification that a party or group committed an act they were not actually responsible for.  They are normally very surprising and not an accurate representation of what that party/group usually does. They are often created by rivals in an attempt to make the other group look guilty and deflect blame.

The term originated with pirates as they would try and distract enemy ships by disguising their flags so they could escape or attack. It has now moved past maritime laws to countries who want to deceive one another and create friction by falsely identifying themselves as another country to create negative situations.

False Flag occurs often during political campaigns through several forms of media. For example, when a candidate’s supporters act as if they support another candidate, and then go about trying to discredit them. It revolves around fake information being released to cause a party look bad, which is very common when elections are occurring. Despite starting during maritime warfare and most often involving government issues, it can also occur in different current civil situations. An example being a setting among different businesses, religions, special interest groups, etc., where false information is being released. False flag situations can also occur when the true organization behind an operation occurring during peacetime is purposely hidden.
Click here to read more on what Merrill Perlman from the Columbia Journalist has to say about False Flag.