Remember that time…. long, long ago…when there was…NO INTERNET? Yep, way back in the 90’s! Back then, when you wanted to locate information about an individual, there was usually a lot of leg work involved. Talking to people that work with that person, neighbors, teachers at school etc. And if you did enough driving, asking, and calling, you could oftentimes find out a good bit of info about someone. Well, thanks to the world of online, it is possible to find out a PLETHORA of information about about anyone just by clacking away at the keyboard, and this comprises the bulk of what is involved with what is known in the private investigating world as OPEN SOURCE INTELLIGENCE or OSINT.
This technique involves searching the internet for any information concerning the individual being investigated and the reasons this is done are numerous. A firm may hire a PI to perform this service on a prospective employee, or someone may want to investigate a person they met through online dating and the list goes on. NO matter what the reason, performing these types of searches can be exhaustive so hiring a private investigating firm who has experience in this area can save you much time and frustration.
Here are just a few of the ways an experienced PI will utilize technology to conduct an Open Source Intelligence Investigation:
Social Media– I think most of us, investigator or not, have performed a search like this before. Checking out someone’s Facebook page, their Instagram account, etc. One can find a LOT of information out about someone just by perusing these accounts. In the case of Open Source Intelligence Investigations, however, one aspect is to utilize various software to determine if the profile you are looking at is actually a fake. One or numerous fake accounts set up by an individual is certainly a red flag.
Work Related Websites– If all an investigator has to go on is a place of business, oftentimes that business will have a professional website that features names or even small profiles of employees. This can be a solid way to corroborate information the individual in question has provided.
School Websites– A school or university’s website can be another fantastic way to glean info on an individual during an OSINT especially if the person was active in sports or another school related activity or organization.
Online Image Searches- Another technique that can help provide information is a simple image search. Prior to the internet, one had to have access to a police database in order to utilize a photo to gain intelligence. Now, anyone can do it. There are websites that allow the user to upload a photo and then specialized software will scan the internet to see if that image or similar ones show up elsewhere and on what sites if they do.
The big G– Yep, when in doubt, GOOGLE it. By simply entering a name into google and hitting ENTER, it is possible to find out all kinds of info on a person. A skilled investigator will utilize these search results to corroborate info they have already collected and possibly collect some new as well.
So, there you have the basics of an Open Source Intelligence investigation. The info is out there, but it is with the skills of a trained private investigator that the internet can truly become the world’s greatest detective!
