OSINT: Open Source Intelligence gathering 101 Slides from my talk on OSINT. I listed examples in the slides about tools, legal methods for both online and physical information security reconnaissance.

1. OSINT: OPEN
SOURCE
INTELLIGENCE
GATHERING
101

2. WHAT IS OSINT?
 OSINT stands for Open Source INTelligence
 According to The U.S. Department of Defense (DoD), OSINT is "produced from publicly available
information that is collected, exploited, and disseminated in a timely manner to an appropriate audience
for the purpose of addressing a specific intelligence requirement.
 These methods allow for legal collection and analysis of individuals and organizations.
 OSINT gathering is the widely accepted first step in both security testing and penetration or hacking.

3. WHERE TO FIND OPEN SOURCE INTELLIGENCE?
 Physical Media: magazine archives, printed
newspapers, radio recordings
 Public Government Data: (applicable to all
levels of government) gov’t reports, FOIA,
directories of contacts
 Internet media: social media, blogs, Youtube
 Commercial sources: software APIs, Open CV
 Google Patent Search
 Unsecured or open directories

4. BENEFITS OF OSINT
For Individuals
 Verify information prior to blind dates or
online dating sites
 Crime and safety information
 Travel safety
 New or recently enacted ordinances & laws
For Professionals
 Emerging technologies
 Due diligence on potential vendors
 Ensuring culture fit with potential hires
 Competitor markets
 Verified consumer contact information

5. TOOLS AND FRAMEWORKS TO IMPLEMENT OSINT
Online
 osintframework.com
 Shodan
 Natural language & geek language on search
engines
Operation Systems
 Security focused Linux Operation Systems
 Open source Chromium
 Locally run scripts from sites like github.com

6. UNCONVENTIONAL METHODS OF OSINT
Public Libraries
 Hold newspaper & magazine archives
 Free Access to commercial contact data sites
like reference USA
 Free access to academic journals and abstracts
Form an LLC or Unaccredited University
 Allowed to collect data within reason
 Free access to certain services for free with a
.edu email address
 Provide analysis services in exchange for
submitted data: see data.com’s old business
model