Abstract <p>The article presents the results of an applied political study on the information flow of external pressure aimed at shaping protest attitudes among Russian social media users. Currently, the activities of external actors in the digital domain are oriented not so much toward launching established “color revolution” scenarios as toward implementing new hybrid schemes based on prolonged manipulative influence, executing chains of special information-psychological operations, the dissemination of fakes, the incitement of social and interethnic strife, and the gradual “soft” deconsolidation and disorganization of the state and society. The scientific problem is driven by the types of contradictions that the core principles of network and cognitive approaches are designed to analyze and explain. The research methodology is based on the general principles underlying predictive analytics of social media and includes using cognitive mapping of digital documents and automated social media analysis. Based on the results of the study, the authors draw conclusions about the basic characteristics of the considered information flow, describe the role of external network actors in shaping protest attitudes among Russian social media users, and substantiate the political risks associated with the implementation of such activities.</p>