Technique
technique:open_source_intelligence
Also: OCINT, OSINT, creative Googling skills, open source intelligence-gathering, open-source intelligence, open-source intelligence type techniques, open-source intelligence-gathering, open-source research, open-sourced research
Online information gathering used to prepare social-engineering and physical-security assessments.
Collection and correlation of publicly available information about target personnel, systems, and technologies.
“we had done a month of open-sourced research”
“searching, scouring the internet to collect the names, e-mail addresses, and phone numbers”
Online information gathering used to prepare social-engineering and physical-security assessments.
“I do a lot of open source intelligence-gathering”
“Before I do any of these assessments I’m always going online”
Use of publicly available information, including search engines, social-media profiles, blogs, and geolocation data, to identify a suspect.
“the FBI did some open-source intelligence, just Googling things”
Non-intrusive collection and analysis of information already published openly.
“OSINT is a non-intrusive way of collecting data. It’s just reading what’s already been published out there in the open.”
Investigation method Wesley McGrew used to identify the clinic and gather information about Ghost Exodus.
“I started doing image searches and open-source intelligence”
“gathering as much as I could through open-source intelligence”
Use of publicly observable website structure and search techniques to discover related covert communication sites.
“It just needed some sort of creative Googling skills which most average open-source intelligence technicians”
Use of publicly available information and investigative methods to identify targets, relationships, and infrastructure.
“their work is rooted in open-source intelligence, or OSINT.”
“They’d have to crawl the web and do a digital investigation”
Collection and analysis of publicly available information from social media, databases, and online records.
“standard sort of open-source intelligence type techniques”
“looking at Facebook, Instagram”
Reconnaissance based on publicly available information about targets, users, and infrastructure.
“We would do that sort of open-reconnaissance”
“using open-source intelligence to figure out ways to infiltrate”
Use of publicly available information to identify possible email addresses and account details.
“They started doing some OSINT, open-source intelligence-gathering”
Collection and analysis of publicly available information about a target.
“her first step is always to do OSINT, open-source intelligence-gathering.”
“I go over to the internet and I look at Facebook”
Gathering personal and organisational information from publicly available sources and data-broker services.
“OCINT, open-source intelligence”
| Direction | Predicate | Other entity | Origin | EP |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| incoming | USES | Nation State Actor | Explicit | 10 |
| incoming | USES | Snow | Explicit | 22 |
| incoming | USES | Higinio Ochoa | Attributed | 63 |
| incoming | USES | Wesley McGrew | Explicit | 70 |
| incoming | USES | Iranian intelligence | Explicit | 75 |
| incoming | USES | Citizen Lab | Explicit | 79 |
| incoming | USES | Paint Parrot | Explicit | 80 |
| incoming | USES | The Pit | Explicit | 83 |
| incoming | INVOLVES | Operation Eligible Receiver | Explicit | 83 |
| incoming | USES | The Guild of the Grumpy Old Hackers | Explicit | 87 |
| incoming | USES | Jenny Radcliffe | Explicit | 90 |
| incoming | USES | Rachel Tobac | Explicit | 144 |
Nation State Actor USES Open-source intelligence
The operator uses publicly available information from social networks, search engines, Reddit, and technical forums to map personnel and infrastructure.
Explicit Confidence 99% · Nsa EP 10 Details
“I have a team of people – I have like, fifteen people who do nothing other than spend eight hours a day for six to eight weeks, searching, scouring the internet”
“we had done a month of open-sourced research”
Snow USES Open-source intelligence
Snow says she performs open-source intelligence gathering before assessments.
Explicit Confidence 99% · Snow EP 22 Details
“I do a lot of open source intelligence-gathering”
Higinio Ochoa USES Open-source intelligence
The FBI used open-source intelligence to connect the w0rmer identity with Higinio Ochoa.
Attributed Confidence 97% · Jack Rhysider EP 63 Details
“the FBI did some open-source intelligence, just Googling things like putting w0rmer and Higinio Ochoa together”
Wesley McGrew USES Open-source intelligence
Wesley McGrew used open-source intelligence and image searches to identify the facility shown in the screenshots.
Explicit Confidence 99% · Wesley McGrew EP 70 Details
“I started doing image searches and open-source intelligence based off the pictures”
Iranian intelligence USES Open-source intelligence
After finding one covert website, Iranian officials used open-source or creative Googling techniques to find additional sites.
Explicit Confidence 98% · Jenna McLaughlin EP 75 Details
“It just needed some sort of creative Googling skills which most average open-source intelligence technicians – but, you know, even average people now, the hordes of Twitter, are certainly capable of.”
Citizen Lab USES Open-source intelligence
Citizen Lab’s investigation relied on open-source intelligence and publicly available data.
Explicit Confidence 99% · Jack Rhysider EP 79 Details
“their work is rooted in open-source intelligence, or OSINT”
Paint Parrot USES Open-source intelligence
Paint Parrot used open-source intelligence techniques to research a target and the target's family, contacts, and routines.
Explicit Confidence 99% · Paint Parrot EP 80 Details
“use your standard sort of open-source intelligence type techniques”
The Pit USES Open-source intelligence
The Pit gathered publicly available information about targets, people, naming conventions, and likely passwords before seeking approval for an attack.
Explicit Confidence 98% · Jeff Man EP 83 Details
“We’d try to learn as much as we could about the target from a benign perspective”
“We would do that sort of open-reconnaissance”
Operation Eligible Receiver INVOLVES Open-source intelligence
The exercise used open-source intelligence to identify ways to infiltrate military bases and networks.
Explicit Confidence 99% · Jack Rhysider EP 83 Details
“using open-source intelligence to figure out ways to infiltrate different military bases and networks”
The Guild of the Grumpy Old Hackers USES Open-source intelligence
The Guild used publicly available information to identify possible email addresses associated with Trump.
Explicit Confidence 99% · Victor EP 87 Details
“We acted on OSINT. We acted on publicly available information”
Jenny Radcliffe USES Open-source intelligence
Jenny says that OSINT is normally her first step in a social-engineering job.
Explicit Confidence 99% · Jack Rhysider EP 90 Details
“When starting the job or any social engineering job, her first step is always to do OSINT”
“I go over to the internet and I look at Facebook”
Rachel Tobac USES Open-source intelligence
Rachel uses open-source intelligence and data-broker information to identify phone numbers, personal details, and target information.
Explicit Confidence 99% · Rachel Tobac EP 144 Details
“when we’re doing OCINT, open-source intelligence”
“I can find those pieces of information through OCINT”