ABSTRACT
The shaping and controlling of public attitudes is a key battleground in the information warfare space. Social media and other online platforms allow operators to bypass the traditional mass media gatekeepers, allowing campaigns of influence to be launched quickly and cheaply to target audiences, be they domestic or international. Open-source and social media intelligence (OSINT and SOCMINT) give us the tools to monitor and understand how (and if) influence is spread online and can help us determine whether we are looking at the flow of real opinions or some form of co-ordinated inauthentic behaviour. The ability to monitor and assess public attitudes is an operational and strategic necessity for defence and national security imperatives. In this presentation, I will cover: - Techniques for collecting and analysing OSINT/SOCMINT data for understanding influence using case studies including the Ukraine conflict and the Solomon Islands - The similarities and differences in the dissemination of truthful and misleading information and mis/dis-information - The challenges inherent in analysing masses of data and content across the Surface, Deep and Dark Web to monitor online conversations and identify risk - The application of advanced machine learning and artificial intelligence tools for helping analysts model influence Join this presentation to understand the trends in online dissemination of influence operations and the technology innovations that are being deployed globally to identify online attempts to influence public opinion.

BIOGRAPHY
Jason Signolet, PhD leads the Data Science team at Fivecast. Since earning his doctorate at the University of Cambridge modelling stem cell gene regulatory networks, Jason has worked on innovative AI and machine learning solutions to solve complex big data challenges for the Defence & National Security, Education and Agriculture sectors. He has led the development of many of Fivecast’s advanced AI and machine learning capabilities for uncovering actionable insights from masses of open-source data; these capabilities are now being used to protect communities in Australia and globally. Jason is Fivecast’s resident expert on influence operations, having authored blogs, white papers and presentations on this topic and is currently working on AI & OSINT solutions to aid the battle against the spread of misinformation and disinformation.