Editor's note: Related reading on Talos election security research:
/what-to-expect-when-youre-electing
/what-to-expect-electing-disinformation-building-blocks
By Azim Khodjibaev and Ryan Pentney.
As Cisco Talos researchers outlined in a paper earlier this summer, disinformation is one of the key cogs in the way foreign actors interfere in American elections. But why does disinformation work so well? And why are people so quick to share information, photos or videos that have been manipulated or faked entirely?
Our latest entry into the “What to expect when you’re electing” series, our latest research paper looks at the psychology of disinformation.
In this report, we’ll turn to the human mechanisms these operations rely on, why they’re effective, the long-term impact on our relationship with online information, and what steps each of us can take to become more responsible consumers of information.
You can download the full report here and find a quick checklist on how you can practice better information hygiene below. Stay tuned to the Talos blog and our social media profiles as we continue to produce more content around the upcoming general election and the threat actors trying to disrupt them. If you’d like a quick checklist on the steps you can take a look at the chart below.
