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DATA-SKEPTICISM5 MIN READ

The False-Positive Funnel

Use base-rate reasoning to explain why many alerts can be false positives when the event is rare.

A rare security event produces a large alert queue. Trace the funnel before deciding what the queue means. Rare event -> alert queue All employees checked population start with everyone Actual takeovers rare base rate small slice Model flags test result true and false mixed Confirmed incidents after verification decision-grade evidence rare underlying event alert mixture verified action Why can a large alert queue still contain many false positives?

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