Discussion
The evolving online credibility literature and research can be applied to adversary credibility assessment online. Identifying cyber adversaries is not just the business of intelligence agencies anymore. In fact, the responsibility lies with governments, social media companies, and, most importantly, the individual. Factors identified as influencing decision-making and judgment regarding credibility, deception, and trust are useful to determine areas for assessing adversary credibility. Note that attributes of credibility should not be considered in isolation or without recognition of the context. An attribute becomes an indicator of credibility concerns when it is incongruous with other attributes or deviates from the observed norm. In turn, being able to identify what “normal” looks like is essential in credibility assessment.
The Online Adversary Credibility Assessment model proposed in this paper for assessing the credibility of potential adversarial and fake personas provides a broader, more comprehensive perspective of the individual being assessed incorporating technical, personal, communicative, and interactive characteristics identified in the current empirical body of literature. The proposed model also requires the engagement of System 2 thinking to assess what looks real and to determine what could be fake or misleading. The consequences of fake or misleading persona-produced material is paramount, as has been illustrated with the impact of false information regarding the 2016 U.S. presidential election campaigns. The Online Adversary Credibility Assessment model highlights potential opportunities for public engagement and education about the risk associated with the online engagement of cyber adversaries. There are potential human and technical advances that could be considered on the basis of this model. This model could be adapted for education purposes for the general public, as well as utilized by organizations and governments in monitoring and assessing cyber actors and foreign influence. Further, this model may have value in the development of cyber adversary detection so that social media and similar online applications can incorporate this model into their authentication processes to assist in identifying potential false accounts, personas, or material.
Table of Contents
- Introduction
- Literature Review and Methodology
- Proposed Model for Online Adversary Credibility Assessment
- Discussion
- Limitations and Future Directions
- Summary
- Declaration of Interest Statement
- References