A geolocation refers to the identification of an electronic device’s geographical location using certain technologies, like GPS. Once a device has been located, so can the individual who owns that device, as people usually keep their electronics in close proximity. Law enforcement investigators can use these geolocations to collect open...
Open source intelligence (OSINT) is considered publicly available information (PAI). OSINT, until the internet was introduced, included newspaper clippings and library resources. OSINT mediums are ever-changing, and therefore, collecting this information is both an art and a science. Finding the most effective and secure OSINT technologies have a lasting impact on investigations. Conveying the sentiment coined by William Gibson,...
Anyone can download and access Tor nodes—which means, anyone could potentially discover the node you’re using to access the Tor browser. But a Tor bridge is an entry point to the Tor network that is not listed publicly, making them more difficult for online users to identify.
What many OSINT researchers and analysts might not realize is that Google can be wielded in specific ways to obtain superior search results. One way? Google Dorking. Google Dorking involves implementing Google’s query language in order to obtain certain data, like specific online files.
Code Name Osian Osian’s mission is to conduct online research, gathering OSINT to build a narrative about groups of interest. Prior to partnering with Ntrepid, Osian used several disparate solutions bridged together. Their analysts used dedicated standalone laptops operating outside the organization’s network to conduct mission operations. Those laptops connected to...
What is The Internet Archive? The Internet Archive, or Archive.org, is a digital library that provides public access to an archive of both current and historical versions of digitized materials, such as web pages, newspapers, software applications, images, books, and more. The non-profit organization started this massive web archiving project in 1996, and it has grown to be one of the most powerful tools for open-source research. Doubling...
What is The Deep Web? When examining what exactly the deep web is, it is important to also understand how to access it. All content on the web is classified into three categories: the surface web, the deep web, and the dark web. The surface web is anything that you can access from a normal search engine, such as Google or...
The dark web refers to the parts of the web that do not exist on typical browsers and sites, but rather on a network called Tor. Tor, often called the “onion router,” reroutes users’ traffic, ensuring all activities won’t be discovered by the typical internet lurker.
Challenges for Law Enforcement Agents Using Stand-Alone Laptops The internet of things (IoT) is now part of virtually all investigations, bringing significant new complexity to gathering evidence or conducting undercover activity especially when using stand-alone laptop methods. Consequently, internet-based investigations create a whole new category of risks. Not unlike detectives who...
The social media company, Facebook, has never allowed users below the age of 13 to make accounts on its platform. However, preventing the creation of underage accounts hasn’t always been a successful effort. As Facebook strives to prevent children from utilizing their platforms, new regulations will make it more difficult to engage on the platform without proper age verification. But how will Facebook manage to keep underage users off the platform? The social media company promises to leverage numerous approaches, including new advancements in artificial...
