# Information Overload **Entity class:** Information and decision concept ## Definition **Information overload** occurs when the volume, velocity, heterogeneity, or ambiguity of available information exceeds the attention and processing capacity of people or institutions. In intelligence, the problem shifts from obtaining data to ranking signals, resolving entities, testing hypotheses, and directing scarce analyst attention. ## Relevance to this collection It connects [[wiki/OSINT|OSINT]], [[wiki/AI-Assisted Intelligence Analysis|AI-Assisted Intelligence Analysis]], [[wiki/Analyst Attention|Analyst Attention]], and [[wiki/Predictive Intelligence|Predictive Intelligence]]. ## Relationships - **master collection:** [[collections/Terrorism, Counterterrorism, and the Intelligence Environment|Terrorism, Counterterrorism, and the Intelligence Environment]]. - **intellectual neighborhood:** [[wiki/Intellectual Neighborhood of the Counterterrorism Collection|Intellectual Neighborhood of the Counterterrorism Collection]]. ## Sources / Provenance - [Office of the Director of National Intelligence, *The IC OSINT Strategy 2024–2026*, March 8, 2024](https://www.dni.gov/files/ODNI/documents/IC_OSINT_Strategy.pdf). **As of:** 2026-09-23