Over the years here I've often mentioned my org in comments. Yesterday we came out of the closet in a manner of speaking, when UserExists published this story: www.dailykos.com/...
We are Collective Analytics. You have seen the results of our work in the news.
This year we'll be focusing on two areas: publication and technology development. Current and anticipated projects range from social- and conventional-media analyses that map influence operations (IO) in new ways that teach and predict, to development of technologies that facilitate collaborative action. We are seeking resources and organising volunteers.
We'll provide information and analysis in support of other organisations, journalists, academics, and anyone seeking to understand and affect the rapidly evolving geopolitical and cyber landscape. You'll see stories here and elsewhere by people you already know.
We have tech projects in progress right now that will have serious impact. The first of these is new encryption software based on an algorithm and method for which there is public mathematical proof of security against quantum cryptanalysis. After that will come voice encryption, and then an AI-related project, and depending on resources, a major analytic project on extremist media that will give Democratic campaigns new insights into areas that are currently in the dark.
Getting to this point has been something of a journey for us.
Our roots go back to the early Obama years, when open-source intelligence (OSINT) was basically unknown to the broad public. Work was conducted under serious nondisclosure agreements and the 'product' was primarily handed in to various gov agencies and, very selectively, to journalists for use 'on background'. In recent years the scope has broadened to include producing material for more open use by journalists, and by attorneys, Congressional staff, political campaigns, and other allies at home and abroad.
OSINT went public in two stages. The first was when Bellingcat's investigations led to identifying Russian involvement in the shootdown of Malaysia Airlines flight 17 and the Novichok poisonings in the UK. Bellingcat is the leading international OSINT org, they are well-funded, and they have training articles on their site www.bellingcat.com if you would like to learn some of the methods.
The second stage started after 06 January 2021 when John Scott-Railton organised, publicly on then-Twitter, an ad-hoc team to identify persons of interest (POIs) in the 06 January Capitol siege. This effort ultimately spawned Sedition Hunters: seditionhunters.org . They provided FBI with evidence leading to the prosecution of slightly more than half of the 06 January defendants.
Collective Analytics began as an informal collaboration of people in technology and the social sciences, working on investigations and cyber activism. Some of the founders have done things that have had effects on the national and global scale. That statement is not hyperbole.
Per org rules, we don't discuss in public each others' engagements & accomplishments without permission, so I won't be posting tasty stories about what my colleagues have done, unless they say it's OK.
My contributions included early reports to agencies about dangerous domestic extremists (some of whom were successfully prosecuted), and the concept of 'stochastic terrorism'.
My original goal in publishing Stochastic Terrorism www.dailykos.com/... was for it to eventually reach the academic & natsec communities. This has since happened with exactly zero promotion on my part: the concept is now widely understood in the culture, and has been studied at the Planck Institutes in Germany and Columbia University in New York, among other places. That's small beans compared to what a few of my colleagues have done and the things we are planning and doing this year.
In the weeks and months to come, I and others will be publishing on various topics. One recurring theme will be 'cognitive resilience', shorthand 'cogres', about identifying and resisting disinformation, misinformation, and emotional/cognitive warfare. This is highly relevant in an era where every societal division is amplified, by enemies foreign and domestic, seeking to defeat democracy at home and abroad. Other planned articles will cover AI as an influencer, domestic extremism, stochastic terrorism, and various cyberdefence topics.
We will also cross the lines between analysis and policy proposals. In normal times these things live under separate roofs. We are not living in normal times. There is serious need for 'think tanks' that can think outside the box, and for 'think & do tanks' with emphasis on 'do'.
As our technology projects evolve we'll be publishing brief updates. When our encryption software is released we'll publish about it here, with links to download sites. We are building other software tools for use in campaigns.
Ask yourself three questions:
1) What is real?
2) How do we know?
3) What can we do?
There is always something we can do.
Lastly, we are seeking resources and people:
We are seeking funds to support our activities. For more about that, see yesterday's story: www.dailykos.com/...
We are looking for volunteers for specific projects: Data and information analysts, coders, statistics experts, and other specialists in technology and the social sciences. People who are fluent in Spanish and other languages. Folks with good research and writing skills. Former US Gov employees in relevant fields are welcome. If that's you, please get in touch via Kosmail and we can discuss projects and opportunities. Over time, some volunteers may become paid staff but this depends on funding.
If what we do isn't your thing, at least find a circle of solidarity in any area of activism: a place to engage and someone & something to stick with over the long term.
The world cries out loud: it needs to be healed. Everyone can do something. Find it, do it. Everything counts.
'Stay tuned, there will be news.'
