Osint Technique

OSINT Technique

Use passive online-source research to answer a scoped question about a person, organization, domain, infrastructure, breach, or event. Favor corroborated pivots over broad collection.

Initial triage

Before collecting sources, classify the target and the question so the research plan stays narrow and defensible.

• Starting state: are you investigating a person, organization, infrastructure footprint, breach exposure, geospatial clue, phishing domain, ransomware wallet, or threat actor?
• First questions: what is the exact research objective, what would count as strong evidence, and which source families are most likely to answer it with passive data?
• Immediate actions: define scope, pick the first 1-2 source families, and set a correlation model before gathering more artifacts.
• Tool-family direction: use online-source and passive-enrichment skills first (sherlock, maigret, holehe, theharvester, subfinder, shodan, httpx) based on target type; add broader automation only after the first pivots prove useful.
• Escalation rule: prefer a few corroborated pivots over broad data hoarding; evidence quality beats quantity.

Core OSINT Loop

OSINT campaigns follow a iterative research lifecycle:

1. Define Scope: Target type (person, company, domain, IP, event), research objectives (profile, risk assessment, attribution, incident response), constraints (OpSec, legal/compliance, timeline).
2. Prioritize Sources: Which online sources are most likely to yield evidence? (e.g., certificate transparency for domain history; LinkedIn/breaches for employee intel; blockchain explorers for crypto flows).
3. Collect & Correlate: Systematic querying across online tools and APIs; cross-reference findings to validate and pivot.
4. Synthesis & Reporting: Map relationships (person ↔ domain ↔ infrastructure ↔ breach), document confidence levels, distinguish correlation from control.
5. Iterate: Each discovery may spawn new research threads (e.g., find email → breach database lookups → person research → infrastructure pivots).

Agent Operating Model

When this technique is active:

1. Interpret the research objective: Is the user investigating a person, organization, infrastructure, event, or threat actor? What are they trying to learn?
2. Map to OSINT domains: Person/identity → social media, breaches, email search, people-search APIs. Company → registries, employee records, leaked documents, compliance filings. Infrastructure → Certificate Transparency, DNS history, host enumeration APIs (Shodan, Censys). Breach → leak databases, dark web monitoring. Threat actor → infrastructure pivots, artifact profiling, attribution discipline.
3. Select online tools & APIs: Not all tools apply to every domain. Shodan searches infrastructure; Hunter.io finds emails; crt.sh tracks certificate history; breach databases index leaked credentials. Prefer APIs and web interfaces over downloadable tools (offensive-tools/osint/ handles tool manuals).
4. Execute research systematically: Follow the OSINT Lifecycle. Document each step: tool used, query, timestamp, findings. Archive evidence (screenshots, URLs, timestamps, SHA-256 hashes).
5. Validate & synthesize: Cross-check findings with independent sources. Separate weak signals (timing coincidence) from strong signals (account name + email + domain registration). Map relationships visually if possible.
6. Report with confidence levels: Mark low/medium/high confidence for each assertion. Distinguish correlation (two things co-occur) from control (one caused the other).

Required Deliverables

An OSINT campaign targeting a specific scope should produce:

1. Scoped Research Plan: Target type, objectives, timeline, OpSec constraints, relevant online domains.
2. Collected Evidence: Artifact log (timestamp, source, URL, query, result, hash if file). JSONL or structured format for reproducibility.
3. Correlation Map: Relationships discovered (person ↔ email ↔ domain, company ↔ employees ↔ infrastructure, wallet ↔ exchanges). Can be graph, spreadsheet, or narrative.
4. Synthesis Report: Findings structured by domain (who, what, where, when, why). Confidence levels per assertion. Key pivots highlighted. Unknown gaps noted.
5. Operational Notes: Tools/APIs used, search parameters, any rate-limiting or access restrictions encountered. Reproducibility data (tool versions, dates).

Case-Based OSINT Selection

Different target types benefit from different online tool families and research priorities:

A. Person or Identity Investigation

Trigger: Name, email, username, phone, document ID, face image. Online sources first: Social media (X/Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, GitHub), people-search APIs, email-verification services, username enumeration, breach databases, image reversal (faces/document scans). Key tools: Sherlock/Maigret (username search), Hunter.io/Epieos (email pivot), Holehe (email → platforms), PimEyes/FaceCheck (face search), breach databases (Have I Been Pwned, Dehashed, IntelX), OSINT Framework (resource directory). Output: Profile timeline, email-domain associations, breach exposure, social connections.

B. Organization / Company Research

Trigger: Company name, domain, country, sector. Online sources first: Business registries (OpenCorporates, SEC EDGAR, regional databases), employee records (LinkedIn, job boards), leaked documents (OCCRP Aleph, breaches), procurement records (EU TED, country-specific), domain registration (WHOIS, Domaintools). Key tools: OpenCorporates (company filings), WHOIS/WHOIS history, LinkedIn (workforce), breach databases, Google dorking (site-specific searches), tech-stack detection (BuiltWith), domain history (SecurityTrails PDNS). Output: Org structure, key personnel, financial health, infrastructure footprint, risk indicators.

C. Infrastructure / Domain / IP Research

Trigger: Domain name, IP address, CIDR block, ASN, hosting provider. Online sources first: Certificate Transparency logs (domain/subdomain history), passive DNS (historical A/AAAA/CNAME records), host enumeration (IP associations, services), BGP/ASN data (ownership, peering), SSL/TLS fingerprints (host clustering). Key tools: crt.sh (Certificate Transparency), SecurityTrails (PDNS + host history), Shodan/Censys (host enumeration), WHOIS APIs, passive DNS aggregators (DNSDB, Farsight), BGP Toolkit, URLScan (page snapshots + fingerprints). CLI tool families: offensive-tools/recon/subfinder/ (subdomain enumeration), offensive-tools/recon/dnsx/ (DNS resolution + filtering), offensive-tools/recon/shodan/ (Shodan API queries), offensive-tools/recon/httpx/ (HTTP probing at scale). Output: Subdomain list, service/version inventory, owner history, related infrastructure, tech stack.

D. Breach & Credential Research

Trigger: Email, domain, username, phone (checking for exposure). Online sources first: Breach aggregators, dark web search, credential stuffing detection, infostealer dumps, OSINT database indices. Key tools: Have I Been Pwned (breach search), Dehashed (credential search), LeakCheck (breach aggregator), IntelX (dark web index), Epieos (email metadata), breach monitoring services. Output: Breach timeline, exposed credentials, infostealer overlap, attack surface severity.

E. Geospatial & Media Analysis

Trigger: Image, video, location description, event timeline. Online sources first: Reverse image search (Google Lens, TinEye, Yandex), geolocation databases (Mapillary, KartaView, Google Earth), satellite imagery (Sentinel Hub, NASA Worldview), shadow/sun calculators (geolocation via shadows), social media check-ins (Snap Map, Swarm history). Key tools: Google Lens, TinEye, Yandex Images, SunCalc (shadow analysis), Mapillary (street-level imagery), Sentinel Hub (historical satellite), Overpass Turbo (OSM queries), FlightRadar24 (aircraft tracking). Output: Location confirmation, timeline, related events/witnesses, geolocation precision.

F. Threat Actor / Malware Investigation

Trigger: Command & control domain, malware hash, exploit code, actor alias. Online sources first: Passive DNS history (C2 domain pivots), certificate reuse (infrastructure clustering), artifact databases (Malpedia, MalwareBazaar), social/procurement pivots (job posts, academic publications, procurement records), code repositories (GitHub, pastebin). Key tools: crt.sh + passive DNS (C2 history), SecurityTrails (PDNS pivots), Malpedia (malware classification), VirusTotal (hash associations), GitHub search (code/credentials), academic databases, job boards (hiring requirements suggest capability). Output: Infrastructure map, capability profile, likely affiliation, TTPs (MITRE ATT&CK), confidence assertions.

G. Phishing / Brand-Abuse Infrastructure

Trigger: Brand, domain, certificate, URL, phishing kit, suspicious login portal. Online sources first: Certificate Transparency, passive DNS, URLScan, WHOIS/RDAP, hosting intelligence, page screenshots. Key questions: Is this a lookalike? Is content live? Does it reuse infrastructure, certificates, kits, or payment artifacts? What confidence supports any linkage? Output: Candidate domain list, enrichment table, archived pages, risk priority, and attribution confidence.

H. Ransomware Payment Tracking

Trigger: Wallet address, ransom note, payment screenshot, blockchain transaction, negotiation portal. Online sources first: Chain explorers, public labels, exchange/mixer/bridge tags, threat-intel wallet reports, transaction graphing tools. Key questions: Did payment occur? Where did funds move next? Are there service touchpoints or clusters? Where does traceability stop? Output: Transaction graph, cluster rationale, cash-out hypotheses, confidence and limitations.

Quality Gates

Before concluding an OSINT investigation:

1. Pivot Rule-of-Three: Require at least three independent weak signals, or one strong + one weak, before asserting a link.
2. Durable vs. Ephemeral Pivots: Prefer registrar account reuse, code-signing certs, PDB paths (durable) over IP addresses (ephemeral, often shared hosting).
3. Source Independence: Cross-check with alternative tools/sources. Avoid single-source attribution.
4. Confidence Labeling: Mark each finding low/medium/high; document reasoning.
5. Archive Everything: Timestamp, URL, screenshot/WARC archive, SHA-256 hash of downloads. Enable reproducibility.
6. Legal/OpSec Check: Ensure queries comply with terms of service and local law. Use separate identities (sock puppets) where appropriate. Do not access honeypots or unauthorized systems.

Anti-Patterns

Avoid:

• Tool Substitution for Methodology: Running Shodan on every domain without asking "what am I looking for?" Research objective drives tool choice, not the reverse.
• Single-Source Attribution: One coincidence (same email on two sites) is not proof of control; gather independent evidence.
• Overwhelming Data Hoarding: Collect with intent. Document why each artifact matters to your research objective. Too much noise drowns the signal.
• Ignoring OpSec: Revealing your investigation via identifiable searches, account re-use, or rate-limited API calls. Use personas, rotate identities, stagger queries.
• Stale Tool Assumptions: OSINT tools evolve (APIs change, free tiers vanish, authentication gates new features). Verify tool status before relying on it for critical pivots.
• Confusing Correlation with Control: Two events at the same time do not prove causation. Weigh timing against independent evidence.

Integration with tool skills

This technique focuses on methodology + online research. Specific tool usage lives in:

OSINT tools (offensive-tools/osint/):

• amass/ — active DNS enumeration + passive collection
• ghunt/ — Google account reverse-engineering
• holehe/ — email-to-platform enumeration
• maigret/ — username aggregation across platforms
• phoneinfoga/ — phone number intelligence
• sherlock/ — username search
• spiderfoot/ — automated multi-source OSINT collection
• theharvester/ — email + subdomain harvesting

Recon tools (offensive-tools/recon/):

• subfinder/ — passive subdomain enumeration
• dnsx/ — DNS resolution and filtering at scale
• gau/ — historical URL discovery from Wayback, Common Crawl, and URLScan sources
• shodan/ — Shodan CLI and API queries
• httpx/ — HTTP probing, title/tech detection

Reference tool SKILL.md files for flags and workflows; use this technique for research strategy and source selection.

References

• person-and-identity-research.md — Email pivots, social media profiling, people-search APIs, facial search, username enumeration.
• company-and-organization-research.md — Registries, employee records, financial filings, leaked documents, compliance checks.
• domain-and-infrastructure-research.md — Certificate Transparency, passive DNS, host enumeration, BGP/ASN, service discovery.
• breach-and-leak-research.md — Breach aggregators, credential search, infostealer databases, dark web indices.
• image-and-geospatial-osint.md — Reverse image search, geolocation techniques, EXIF analysis, satellite imagery, chronolocation.
• proximity-and-trilateration-osint.md — Location inference from distance-only apps (dating, social discovery, fitness, BLE proximity): weighted LS trilateration, GDOP, quantization noise, RANSAC behavioral clustering, sun-orientation closure.
• social-media-profiling.md — Platform-specific techniques (X, LinkedIn, Instagram, Telegram, Mastodon, Bluesky), check-in data, content archives.
• threat-actor-research.md — Infrastructure pivoting, artifact profiling, attribution discipline, MITRE ATT&CK mapping.
• ct-phishing-and-attribution.md — CT monitoring for lookalikes, phishing infrastructure enrichment, and cautious attribution methodology.
• ransomware-payment-tracking.md — Cryptocurrency flow tracking, service/mixer/bridge identification, cluster confidence, and traceability limits.
• operational-security-and-evidence.md — Sock puppets, browser isolation, evidence archival, chain of custody, reproducibility logging.
• recon-operations-playbook.md — Operational framework for confidence upgrades (tentative/firm/confirmed), detectability tags + back-off ladder, time-budget profiles (1h/4h/1d/1w), and minimal asset-graph discipline.
• identity-fabric-enumeration.md — Microsoft Entra/Okta/ADFS/Google Workspace/generic OIDC tenant discovery, IP-based Microsoft IDP correlation, GetCredentialType deep-mode, M365 federation (Teams, SharePoint, OneDrive personal-site, OAuth client_id, device-code phishing, Power Platform), GraphQL field-suggestion enum and bypasses.
• secret-patterns-and-validators.md — 48-pattern secret regex catalog (AWS, GCP, GitHub, AI APIs, package registries, observability, SaaS) with severity + false-positive notes, read-only validators for 9 providers (Postman/AWS/GitHub/Slack/Anthropic/OpenAI/npm/Atlassian/DataDog), post-validation enumeration (IAM simulate, GitHub scopes, Slack workspace, JWT triage). Helper: scripts/secret_scan.py.
• attack-path-and-severity.md — Endpoint interest scoring (0-100, 9 signals), mobile-app ownership confidence, attack-path hint templates for 40+ trigger classes, severity decision matrix with worked examples per tier (CRITICAL → INFO).
• code-and-package-leaks.md — 13 GitHub code-search dorks, package registry sweep workflow (npm/PyPI/RubyGems/Cargo/Packagist/NuGet/Maven/Docker Hub), version-history walk, typosquat candidate generation.
• threat-intel-and-vuln-prio.md — TI feed catalog (CISA/MISP/Malpedia/ThreatFox/abuse.ch), sandbox + sample triage stack, bulk CVE prioritization with EPSS + CISA KEV + ExploitDB + Trickest, daily-cache workflow, HackerOne disclosed-report mining via scripts/h1_reference.py.
• linkedin-and-tech-stack-osint.md — LinkedIn employee enumeration (search techniques, Google dorks, free vs Sales Navigator), P0–P5 role tier rubric, sock-puppet hygiene, job-posting tech-stack extraction across 10 ATS platforms.
• saas-and-collaboration-osint.md — Postman public workspace walk, Stack Exchange code-paste sweep, public SaaS workspace dorking, and chat/community discovery.
• dork-corpus.md — Cross-engine reusable dork templates organized by intent for leaks, configs, admin panels, and archived content.
• sector-specific-recon.md — Sector-specific pivots, vendors, protocols, and severity cues by vertical such as healthcare, finance, ICS/OT, and government.