Expanding the knowledge base around influence operations has proven challenging, despite known threats to elections,COVID-related misinformation circulating worldwide, and recent tragic events at the U.S. Capitol fueled in part by political misinformation and conspiracy theories. Credible, replicable evidence from highly sensitive data can be difficult to obtain. The bridge between industry and academia remains riddled with red tape. Intentional and systemic obstructions continue to hinder research on a range of important questions about how influence operations spread, their effects, and the efficacy of countermeasures.