OSINT Related Intelligence Sites & Links
(This page was last updated on the 14/03/2024)Open Source Intelligence (OSINT) is any unclassified information, in any medium, that is generally available to the public, even if its distribution is limited or only available upon payment.
When undertaking online research and then submitting intelligence reports from that OSINT research, there are a few things to consider adding to your report which may assist those working with your material to help them evaluate & grade it appropriately;
- Is the website the information was located on an authoritative source or not
- Who is the registered owner of the website
- When does the information date from and try to trace the information back as far as you can
- Is it possible to Parallel Source any information collected
- Is it possible to identify the IP Addresses linked to any Social Media account or online comments of interest
- Is the information believed to be genuine or not, could it be misinformation or a joke (don't just take comments at
face value)
When dealing with OSINT then it should be analysed & treated like any other Intelligence. The following links may help in undertaking your research and analysing your findings, which are shown in date order, with oldest first;
UK Law Enforcement .
- The ACPO / NPIA Manual of Guidance on the Management Of Police Information, dating from 2010,
including the 5x5x5 Information/Intelligence Reporting system used by the Police in the UK and the
ACPO Good Practice Guide for Digital Evidence dating from 2012
- Police Scotland Internet, Research & Investigations Standard Operating Procedures, dating from 2013
and slightly redacted but still useful
- The ACPO Guidance on Online Research & Investigation, & Examples Supplement, which dates from 2013
- The Trading Standards Intelligence Operating Model, which was produced in 2013 by the National Trading
Standards Board and introduced a National Intelligence Framework to support the work of Trading Standards
Officers
- The Metropolitan Police Internet & Social Media Use Guidance dating from 2014, which was obtained from a
previous Freedom Of Information request
- The UK College Of Policing Intelligence Report breakdown, under the new 3x5x2 system, dating from 2015
- The NPCC Digital Investigation and Intelligence Guide, which dates from 2015
- The redacted NPCC Guidance On Open Source Investigations / Research, dating from 2015
- The NPCC Internet Intelligence & Investigations Strategy, dating from 2019
- The NPCC Internet Intelligence & Investigations Guidance On Overt Profiles, dating from 2023
- The redacted NPCC Internet Intelligence & Investigations Guidance On Covert Profiles, dating from 2023
- The 2013 / 2014 Annual Report from the Chief Surveillance Commissioner, including on the use of online social
media sites (page 20) by law enforcement in the UK
- The 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020 & 2021 Annual Reports from the Investigatory Powers Commissioner, which includes
reports on the use of social media sites and online research in investigations, by law enforcement in the UK
- The Home Office Revised Code of Practice For Covert Surveillance and Property Interference, dating from
August 2018
- The Home Office Revised Code of Practice For Covert Human Intelligence Sources, dating from December 2022
- The Hampshire Constabulary Policy Document On Open Source Investigation And Research, dating from 2019
- The Essex Police Policy On Open Source & Social Media dating from 2019, which was obtained from a
previous Freedom Of Information request
- The Social Media Investigations Procedure from St Helens Council, dating from October 2018
International Documents
- NATO's OSINT Handbook and Intelligence Exploitation of the Internet, which are fairly old but may still be relevant
- The NSA's report on untangling the web, dating from 2007
- The US Congress report on Open Source Intelligence, dating from 2007
- The CIA's article, titled Sailing the Sea of OSINT in the Information Age
- The CIA's article, titled Intelligence Community (IC) Open Source Intelligence (OSINT) Strategy for 2024-2026
- The US Army's Open Source Intelligence report dating from 2012, which includes on page 22, a guide to
rating Open Source Reliability & Credibility