Forty students from over twelve universities, both within Bulgaria and internationally, are scheduled to participate in the final round of DisInfoHack 2026 at the GATE Institute of St. Kliment Ohridski University of Sofia on Monday. The event will be inaugurated by caretaker Innovation and Growth Minister Irena Mladenova and caretaker Foreign Minister Nadezhda Neynsky.
DisInfoHack is a specialized hackathon format that merges research methodologies with practical skills for analyzing the digital information landscape. The initiative aims to engage young people in efforts to cultivate a more reliable and high-quality information environment. Following the inaugural “slow” student hackathon in 2025 and DisInfoHack Junior for secondary students later that year, the 2026 final brings together participants from more than ten Bulgarian cities and twelve universities.
The students are currently analyzing the Bulgarian media and digital sphere to identify disinformation narratives and develop countermeasures. Their work spans six critical areas: elections, conflicts, ecology, migration, patriotism, and crises. At the final, participants will present their findings, the winners will be announced, and key recommendations for safeguarding information integrity in Bulgaria will be presented.
This initiative operates under the framework of the three-year project CoDE – Countering Disinformation Environment in Bulgaria, which focuses on building information resilience through scientific methods. The project is executed by St. Kliment Ohridski University of Sofia via the GATE Institute, collaborating with the European Studies Department of the Faculty of Philosophy and the Faculty of Economics and Business Administration.
Partners include the Institute of Information and Communication Technologies at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, the European Software Institute, and technology companies Webcentric, Contipso, and Identrics. Furthermore, the model is planned for implementation in Poland in May 2026.
Topics: #final #students #universities
