By Kris Tanaka
SecureWorld Media
According to the Central Intelligence Agency, information does not have to be secret to be valuable.
How true - it is one of our greatest resources. Furthermore, anyone can access a large portion of this vast universe of data, which is growing exponentially day by day. You just need to know where to look.
Open Source Intelligence (OSINT) is intelligence that is gathered from publicly available sources. By collecting and organizing this information, you can gain valuable insight into the relationships of individuals and organizations, as well as their current and future activities.
Is it spying? Well, not really. The information is out there, waiting for someone to connect the dots.
Common sources of information include:
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Traditional mass media: newspapers, magazines, radio, television and computer-based information.
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Web-based communities and user-generated content: social-networking sites, video sharing sites, wikis and blogs.
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Public data: government reports, official data such as budgets, demographics, hearings, legislative debates, press conferences, speeches, marine and aeronautical safety warnings, environmental impact statements and contract awards.
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Professional and academic: conferences, professional associations, academic papers, and subject matter experts.
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Geospatial information: maps and commercial imagery products.
OSINT has been around for hundreds of years, in one form or another. In the past, the process was time-consuming - sifting through huge amounts of material, filtering out irrelevant data in order to find important connections. Today, we still have the challenge of information overload, but we also have tools and technology that make the collection and analysis tasks easier - not to mention a lot quicker - than before.
In his upcoming presentation, "Open Source Intelligence (OSINT): Is There Any Privacy Left?" at SecureWorld Boston, Roy Wattanasin will give a hands-on demonstration of Maltego, search engines and other OSINT tools. Wattanasin, information security officer at MITM, said the presentation is designed to show you how much information is publicly available and how many ways it can be used.
"We will also cover a basic methodology of what to look for in order to help you protect your organization," he said.
Interested in finding out how you can make OSINT part of your security strategy? Join Wattanasin at SecureWorld Boston on March 29-30. "Don't forget your business cards and take advantage of participating in as many discussions as you can," he added. "This is your chance to ask questions, learn and get answers from other professionals."
