What is OSINT?

OSINT stands for open-source intelligence. That is, the collection and analysis of data obtained from publicly accessible information channels. Such sources can basically be anything: newspapers and magazines, television and radio, data published by official organizations, scientific research, conference reports, etc.

Nowadays, of course, such intelligence is primarily based on information scraped from the internet. Over the past 10–15 years, online public communication platforms have become especially valuable as OSINT-gathering tools: chats, forums, social networks, and messengers.

The range of people using OSINT is quite diverse: journalists, scientists, civil activists, government and business analysts, as well as intelligence officers themselves. In a nutshell, OSINT is an important and effective tool for collecting data. But perhaps the more significant question is how such information gets put to use.