Attack and interception in networks

Journal article: This paper studies a game of attack and interception in a network, where a single attacker chooses a target and a path, and each node chooses a level of protection. We show that the Nash equilibrium of the game exists and is unique. We characterize equilibrium attack paths and attack distributions as a function of the underlying network and target values. We show that adding a link or increasing the value of a target may harm the attacker – a comparative statics effect which is reminiscent of Braess’s paradox in transportation economics. Finally, we contrast the Nash equilibrium with the equilibrium of a variant of the model: one where all nodes cooperate in interception.

Author(s)

Francis Bloch, Kalyan Chatterjee, Bhaskar Dutta

Journal
  • Theoretical Economics
Date of publication
  • 2023
Keywords JEL
C.C7.C72 D.D8.D85 K.K4.K42
Keywords
  • Network interdiction
  • Networks
  • Attack and defense
  • Inspection games
Pages
  • 1511–1546
Version
  • 1
Volume
  • 18