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!
This week, we provide a valuable list of resources for imports and exports. These platforms can be valuable for investigative activity—uncovering all kinds of valuable intel. Come on, it’s time to dig in.
Business: panjiva.com
Panjiva offers a 360 degree view of global trade, offering macro data on 95% of global trade flows and transactional data on 35% of global trade flows. It tracks 8 million companies and 1 billion shipping records using machine-learning technologies. Its dynamic data visualizations are comprehensive and useful for a variety of investigative targets, including bills of lading, trade data, and export details. Panjiva is a must-have for investigators looking at counterfeit products and illegal trade of their merchandise.
Business: PortExaminer.com
Port Examiner is a website from which you can examine U.S. customs import records for millions of ocean shipments from all over the world. Information includes the Bill of Lading, including vessel name, and ports of loading and discharge, among other details. Most importantly the shipper, the consignee (receiver), and the description of goods are noted. Searching is limited to Supplier, Importer, Cargo Description and Carton Marks. It is an reliable free resource for those who need to review the import and export records of a manufactured commodity.
Business: privatefunddata.com
PrivateFundData provides detailed information on hedge funds, private equities, and venture capital funds. A company search will provide you with contact details, a list of individuals who manage the fund, as well as individual fund data. A private fund search reveals information including assets, investor info, broker-dealers, auditors, custodians, and more. Without a membership, you’ll have limited access to the database. Full access and unlimited searches to over 30,000 private funds, over 6,000 hedge funds, private equity companies and VC firms and more than 30,000 employees/executives’ profiles is available for a small monthly fee. PrivateFundData could provide your missing piece of information from your background or due diligence report.
Have an OSINT tip for us? Contact us, and we will consider reviewing it in future posts!
Like what you’re reading? Check out Hg’s monthly webinars!
Throughout the year, Hetherington Group offers monthly live webinars on current investigative tactics involving social networks, search engines, due diligence, the dark web, and other related topics. Participants should have some basic experience of the topic, as all programs are offered at an intermediate level, unless otherwise noted.
