A research article authored by Bonnie Rushing and Shouhuai Xu, Ph.D., of the University of Colorado, Colorado Springs, introduces a metric designed to measure the engagement effectiveness of disinformation-driven cognitive attacks across social media platforms.
The study proposes a formula — E = I/t — which evaluates engagement effectiveness by comparing user interactions such as views, likes, comments, and shares against the number of attacker-generated transmissions. Researchers say the approach allows analysts to compare the behavioral reach of disinformation campaigns across platforms in a standardized way.
The framework introduces a weighted interaction model that assigns different values to types of engagement and categorizes campaign performance using an ordinal grading scale ranging from F to A+, including a “Viral” classification.
The researchers applied the model to case studies involving disinformation campaigns on Instagram, YouTube, and Facebook, demonstrating how the metric captures not just the reach of content but the depth of user engagement.
The paper titled: Quantifying the Engagement Effectiveness of Cyber Cognitive Attacks: A Behavioral Metric for Disinformation Campaigns, also aligns with the DISARM framework, which is used by analysts and practitioners to study and counter disinformation operations.
According to the authors, the proposed method offers a new way for researchers and security professionals to quantify the behavioral impact of cognitive attacks and better understand how malicious influence spreads online.
(AI was used in part to facilitate this article.)
