Brooklyn Eagle: Brooklyn Radio Time

Damon McCoy received his Ph.D. in Computer Science from the University of Colorado, Boulder. He is a member of the Center for Automotive Embedded Systems Security (CAESS) that conducted one of the first security analysis of a modern automobile. His research focuses on empirically measuring the security and privacy of technology systems and their intersections with society. Currently, his primary focus is on online payment systems, economics of cybercrime, automotive systems, privacy-enhancing technologies and censorship resistance.

Candidates in the upcoming midterm elections are spending billions of dollars on television, radio, out-of-home and on social media channels like Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. An analysis of four key senate races by NYU Tandon cybersecurity and privacy expert Damon McCoy opens a keyhole into who on the left and right is spending what on which messages.

Research by McCoy and his team at the Cybersecurity for Democracy (C4D) program at Tandon shows that, among other things, social media spend by mid-term candidates in Nevada, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin and Georgia — states where control of congress hangs in the balance — suggests Democrats are outspending Republicans on Meta (formerly Facebook) with ads on Facebook and Instagram focused on generating political donations.