Our weekly hack for those in the field doing the work & digging up critical intel.
The ability to uncover information on the internet is the primary skill of an online investigator. There are hundreds of thousands of surface, deep, and dark websites, but which are most pertinent to your unique case? Do you know how to utilize Google to its full potential? With new social media platforms coming online at a rapid pace, capturing leads and evidence in social media networks is more complex than ever. Do you know the latest tools of the trade?
Hg’s OSINT Tips of the week provides you with the latest intel how to be most effective in our tradecraft. We are always looking for new tools, so don’t hesitate to let us know if you have one you’d like reviewed in a future post!
Enjoy!
IMAGE SEARCH: karmadecay.com
Karma Decay is a beta reverse image search for Reddit. This specialization allows Karma Decay to determine if the image is being posted on Reddit. You can choose to upload the image, enter the URL where the image was found, or the URL of the Reddit page where the image was seen to determine if it is being shared in other subreddits.
SOCIAL MEDIA: Gab.com
Gab is a social network that promotes free speech and does not limit or control the content published by its users. It is popular within many hate organizations, including anti-Semitic, anti-black, and alt-right groups (e.g., Tree of Life Synagogue shooter Robert Bowers in October 2018 posted his manifesto on Gab). A Gab account is required to participate on the Gab website, but to search you can use gab.com/search. Once a Gab account is created, users may search by trending topic, username, group, hashtag, or URL user/status. If you or your company is conducting online risk monitoring, Gab as a resource shouldn’t be overlooked.
SEARCH TOOLS: ViewDNS.info
ViewDNS.info contains 25 free searchable tools for locating domain names, IP addresses, emails addresses, and more—tools that help piece together bits of information. ViewDNS.info also includes searches for websites accessible in China and Iran—two countries with strict privacy laws. At the ViewDNS.info website, a grid of search options will appear from where you can upload your of-interest websites or links and locate available data on them. To access and download international data, a package containing domain lists from 54 countries is available for purchase, on top of individually priced packages for specific countries. With ViewDNS.info data is easily accessible and multiple searches can be efficiently performed.
Have an OSINT tip for us? Contact us, and we will consider reviewing it in future posts!
Are you an analyst or investigator looking for advanced OSINT & SOCMINT training? If so, check out Hg’s webinar series on social media investigative training, where you can attend live sessions and receive CEUs or watch previously recorded sessions to beef up your investigative skills.
