Open-Source Intelligence (OSINT) - Tools & Techniques from Udemy

The Internet is a vital tool for investigation, with individuals now sharing more information on themselves than ever. Through the effective use of web browsers, search engines and social media you can find a plethora of information on an individual, this is referred to as Open-Source Intelligence. This course will provide you with a comprehensive understanding of Open-Source Intelligence (OSINT) and has been expertly crafted to cover all of the core basics that you will need to know so that you can conduct your own OSINT investigations.

This course is suitable for anyone in either the public or private sectors, particularly those within law enforcement, corporate security, investigations, journalism and human resources, who are all heavily involved in the collection of information for intelligence purposes.

The course has been developed by an expert in internet-based criminal investigation via Open-Source methods, who has successfully utilised OSINT techniques during both Police and Private investigations. The trainer has a law enforcement background and successfully used the skills demonstrated within this course to identify and locate criminal individuals.

Through this course, you'll learn the best way to set up your machine to conduct investigations, as well as the current techniques utilised in the day to day work of an OSINT professional. This course will demonstrate tools currently available to aid OSINT practitioners in their investigations and research into individuals and businesses. The course also covers Open-Source policy, an often-overlooked section within OSINT training. As well as learning the tools and techniques, it's also crucial to know when you can take action and what action is appropriate; graduates of our training will be educated on UK policy for Open-Source research and investigation, to ensure knowledge of accepted UK guidance for individuals acting on behalf of law enforcement or a business. You will also learn the best way to navigate social media as an OSINT investigator, utilising the latest SOCMINT techniques. You will learn how to search Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, TikTok and LinkedIn to best gather information on your targets.

At the end of this course, you'll be able to conduct your own OSINT investigations and will have a thorough understanding of the tools at your disposal. Whether you're a solo practitioner just starting out, someone just interested in what an OSINT specialist does or can find out about you, or you're a seasoned professional looking for a refresher and an overview of the best systems currently available, this course will suit your needs.

What's inside

Learning objectives

Osint (open-source intelligence) tools and techniques
Flow charts to explain the osint process for the tools and techniques taught
Software tools and browser add-ons for open source investigations
Investigation techniques for social media sites including facebook, linkedin, tiktok and twitter

Search engine operators to aid in osint investigations
How to set up your system for investigations to limit exposure
How to record evidence correctly to support operations

Osint (open-source intelligence) tools and techniques
Flow charts to explain the osint process for the tools and techniques taught
Software tools and browser add-ons for open source investigations
Investigation techniques for social media sites including facebook, linkedin, tiktok and twitter
Search engine operators to aid in osint investigations
How to set up your system for investigations to limit exposure
How to record evidence correctly to support operations

Syllabus

Introduction

This lecture will provide an introduction to the course leader, Steve Adams. The lecture will also outline how the course will progress.

This lecture will give a brief overview of what Open-Source Intelligence is.

Internet Intelligence & Investigation (III)

Investigative Process Flowcharts

Open-Source Policy

You'll learn the best way to set up your computer for investigations

The lecture covers which physical pieces of technology may benefit an OSINT practitioner.

The lecture explains what a VPN is and which providers I recommend.

The lecture explains what a Virtual Machine is and which I recommend.

Virtual Machines - Installing a Hypervisor

Virtual Machines - Installing the Trace Labs VM

The lecture covers my recommendations of browsers to use for OSINT investigations.

The lecture explains how to set up Chrome and Firefox settings to optimise your online security.

The lecture explains the importance of appropriate source capture and the best tools to do it.

You'll have an understanding of my favourite tools on offer browser add-ons to aid in OSINT invesitgations

Quick Briefing

Capturing links

Capturing full webpages

Quick Web Caches

Ad and Script Blocking

Secure Connection

Media Download

You'll have an understanding of my favourite tools on offer to aid in OSINT invesitgations

A quick briefing on OSINT tools

People Search Engines

eMail tools

Messaging App Security

Data Breaches and Passwords

Caches

Web Domains

You'll learn site operators to help improve your web searching skills. These skills will not only help on search engines but can be used on other platforms, including Twitter

Site Operators

Business Searching

Searching on Vehicles

Searching by date posted on Google

Online Marketplaces

You'll learn how to use social media to aid in OSINT invesitgations

General Account Advice

You'll learn to search for targets via eMail address and phone number as well as the best ways to operate the new graph search, following the changes in June 2019

Facebook - Finding a User ID

Facebook - Searching by email address

Facebook - Finding Mutual Friends

Facebook - Groups

Facebook - Marketplace

Facebook - Searching on a Profile

Twitter

LinkedIn - Searching by email address

LinkedIn - Searching by current and previous employers

LinkedIn - Identifying the name of an anonymous "LinkedIn Member" account

LinkedIn - Searching without an account

LinkedIn - Recent Activity

Instagram - Downloading a full-size Profile Picture

Instagram - Searching by date posted

TikTok

Snapchat - Maps and Downloading Stories

Activity Tracking Apps

You'll learn about honeypot options and how they can be used

Canary Tokens and the alternatives

You'll learn how photos and the embedded data within can aid OSINT investigations

Reverse Image Searching

Metadata

Mapping Options

Good to know

Know what's good

, what to watch for

, and possible dealbreakers

Focuses on Open-Source Intelligence investigation, an emerging field in law enforcement, corporate security, and journalism

Taught by an expert in internet-based criminal investigation via Open-Source methods

Provides hands-on training in the latest OSINT techniques and tools

Suitable for individuals with various backgrounds in the public or private sector who need to collect information for intelligence purposes

Covers the legal and ethical aspects of OSINT, ensuring that students comply with relevant UK policies

Activities

Be better prepared before your course. Deepen your understanding during and after it. Supplement your coursework and achieve mastery of the topics covered in Open-Source Intelligence (OSINT) - Tools & Techniques with these activities:

Review basic computer networking concepts

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Ensures that you have a solid understanding of basic computer networking concepts, which are essential for OSINT investigations.

Browse courses on Computer Networking

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Review your notes from your previous computer networking course
Read a book or article about basic computer networking concepts
Take a practice quiz or exam on basic computer networking concepts

Create a study guide for the course

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Helps you to organize the course material and identify key concepts.

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Review the course syllabus
Identify the key concepts in each lecture
Create a study guide that summarizes the key concepts

Explore osintframework.com tutorials

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Introduces you to commonly used OSINT tools and techniques.

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Visit the osintframework.com website
Browse the site for tutorials
Select a tutorial to work through
Follow the instructions in the tutorial
Complete the tutorial

Four other activities

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Show all seven activities

Participate in an OSINT discussion forum

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Engages you with other students and professionals to discuss and learn about OSINT.

Browse courses on OSINT

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Find an OSINT discussion forum
Join the discussion forum
Participate in discussions

Volunteer with an organization that uses OSINT

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Provides you with practical experience using OSINT in a real-world setting.

Browse courses on OSINT

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Find an organization that uses OSINT
Contact the organization and inquire about volunteering opportunities
Complete the necessary training
Start volunteering

Create a blog post about your OSINT experiences

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Allows you to reflect on what you have learned and share your experiences with others.

Browse courses on OSINT

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Choose a topic for your blog post
Write a draft of your blog post
Edit and revise your blog post
Publish your blog post

Participate in an OSINT competition

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Challenges you to apply your OSINT skills and knowledge in a competitive setting.

Browse courses on OSINT

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Find an OSINT competition
Register for the competition
Prepare for the competition
Participate in the competition

Career center

Learners who complete Open-Source Intelligence (OSINT) - Tools & Techniques will develop knowledge and skills that may be useful to these careers:

Cyber Intelligence Analyst

Cyber Intelligence Analysts collect, analyze, and disseminate information about cyber threats. The Open-Source Intelligence (OSINT) - Tools & Techniques course can help build a foundation for success by providing insight into the latest open source intelligence tools and techniques that are used to gather and analyze information about cyber threats.

See salaries and explore the career path for Cyber Intelligence Analyst

Intelligence Officer

Intelligence Officers collect, analyze, and disseminate information to support decision-making. The Open-Source Intelligence (OSINT) - Tools & Techniques course can help build a foundation for success by enhancing your information gathering and investigative analysis skills.

See salaries and explore the career path for Intelligence Officer

Information Operations Specialist

Information Operations Specialists plan and execute operations to influence the behavior of foreign audiences. The Open-Source Intelligence (OSINT) - Tools & Techniques course provides valuable information on how to gather and analyze information from publicly available sources, which can be a key part of information operations.

See salaries and explore the career path for Information Operations Specialist

Counterintelligence Agent

Counterintelligence Agents investigate and neutralize threats to national security. The Open-Source Intelligence (OSINT) - Tools & Techniques course provides valuable information on how to gather and analyze information from publicly available sources, which can be a key part of counterintelligence investigations.

See salaries and explore the career path for Counterintelligence Agent

Private Investigator

Private Investigators conduct investigations for individuals and organizations. The Open-Source Intelligence (OSINT) - Tools & Techniques course provides valuable information on how to gather and analyze information from publicly available sources, which can be a key part of private investigations.

See salaries and explore the career path for Private Investigator

Investigative Journalist

Investigative Journalists conduct in-depth research to uncover facts and stories that are not readily available through traditional news sources. The Open-Source Intelligence (OSINT) - Tools & Techniques course can help build a foundation for success by improving your ability to gather and analyze information from a variety of sources.

See salaries and explore the career path for Investigative Journalist

Intelligence Analyst

As an Intelligence Analyst, you will collect, analyze, and interpret large amounts of information to provide insights and recommendations to decision-makers. The Open-Source Intelligence (OSINT) - Tools & Techniques course can help build a foundation that will assist you by refining your search engine and social media investigation skills to extract actionable intelligence from publicly available data.

See salaries and explore the career path for Intelligence Analyst

Cyber Threat Analyst

As a Cyber Threat Analyst, you will investigate and analyze cyber threats to identify and mitigate risks to an organization's systems and data. The Open-Source Intelligence (OSINT) - Tools & Techniques course may be useful for uncovering open source intelligence that aids in identifying and tracking emerging threats.

See salaries and explore the career path for Cyber Threat Analyst

Network Security Engineer

Network Security Engineers design, implement, and maintain network security devices to protect an organization's computer networks from unauthorized access, use, disclosure, disruption, modification, or destruction. The Open-Source Intelligence (OSINT) - Tools & Techniques course provides you with a working knowledge of freely available, open source software tools that are commonly used by network security engineers.

See salaries and explore the career path for Network Security Engineer

Cybersecurity Analyst

Cybersecurity Analysts participate in and may lead the design, implementation, and maintenance of an organization's cybersecurity safeguards. The Open-Source Intelligence (OSINT) - Tools & Techniques course provides insight to prevalent online investigation methods that may be used in conjunction with an organization's cybersecurity plan.

See salaries and explore the career path for Cybersecurity Analyst

Security Engineer

Security Engineers are responsible for designing, implementing, and maintaining security systems to protect organizations from cyber threats. The Open-Source Intelligence (OSINT) - Tools & Techniques course can help build a foundation that will assist you by introducing you to open source investigation tools that can be used in uncovering potential threats to an organization.

See salaries and explore the career path for Security Engineer

Information Security Analyst

Information Security Analysts plan and implement security measures to protect an organization's computer systems and networks. The Open-Source Intelligence (OSINT) - Tools & Techniques course can help build a foundation for success by reinforcing investigative techniques and methodologies that can be used alongside an organization's current security measures.

See salaries and explore the career path for Information Security Analyst

Digital Forensic Examiner

Digital Forensic Examiners collect, preserve, and analyze digital evidence from computers and other electronic devices. This course provides you with a working knowledge of freely available, open source software tools that are commonly used by digital forensic examiners.

See salaries and explore the career path for Digital Forensic Examiner

Web Developer

Web Developers design and develop websites. The Open-Source Intelligence (OSINT) - Tools & Techniques course may be useful for gathering information about users through website analytics and tracking.

See salaries and explore the career path for Web Developer

Software Engineer

Software Engineers design, develop, and test software applications. The Open-Source Intelligence (OSINT) - Tools & Techniques course may be useful for developing investigative applications that automate tasks and processes.

See salaries and explore the career path for Software Engineer