State-of-the-art cybersecurity was a novelty when the public internet was first launched in the early 1990s. Things have changed drastically in the three decades since. Cybersecurity is no longer a novelty or an option. Neither is open-source intelligence (OSINT) and the tools that power it.
OSINT tools or selection of software applications and platforms intentionally designed to collect, process, and analyze data from diverse sources. The ‘open source’ part of the equation comes from the fact that all the data is freely available through public sources. Many of those sources are on the dark web and require specialized knowledge and software to access, but they are still public, nonetheless.
A Proactive Approach to Security
To fully understand OSINT tools and what they accomplish, it’s important to understand the foundational principle of open source intelligence itself. That foundational principle is proactivity.
Rather than merely hardening defenses and waiting for attacks to come, a proactive approach dictates going out and looking for threat actors and potential attacks. It is similar in principle to sending out the cavalry and reconnaissance divisions in warfare. You want to know where the enemy is, what he is doing, and what he might be planning.
In cybersecurity, this is the core focus of OSINT. Cybersecurity experts utilize a range of tools capable of harvesting boatloads of data. That data can then be analyzed to create threat actor profiles, reveal what threat actors are currently working on, and even get a feel for imminent attacks that could be launched at any moment.
6 Things OSINT Tools Accomplish
DarkOwl is a recognized leader in OSINT tools and dark web threat intelligence. Like nearly all of their competitors, they offer a suite of tools designed to accomplish six specific things:
1. Harvest Data
OSINT’s lifeblood is data. Its tools aggressively scrape known sources of public data for anything they can find. They search, collect, and aggregate information that can be plugged into analytics tools for better understanding. The data they glean comes from:
- Websites
- Social media
- Dark web databases
- Dark web forms
- Dark web marketplaces
- A variety of public records
Any and all publicly available data is up for grabs. The more data OSINT tools can gather, the more information analytics tools have to work with.
2. Analyze and Correlate Information
All the data in the world is useless if security teams have no means of applying it. To make applications possible, they rely on OSINT tools to analyze and correlate the data.
Analysis determines relevance. It turns data into actionable insights security teams can work with. Correlation provides context. It links data, people, organizations, domains, attack vectors, etc. With strong technical data and the right context, security teams have information they can use to defend against future attacks.
3. Uncover Threats and Vulnerabilities
The end goal of collecting and analyzing so much data is figuring out vulnerabilities and threats. Understanding vulnerabilities gives organizations the opportunity to address them. As for threats, security teams want to know what they are, where they are coming from, and how they are launched.
4. Monitor Trends
The dark web and social media are excellent resources for monitoring trends. OSINT tools pay attention to what people are saying on social media sites and forums. They keep track of public sentiment to identify emerging trends within the cybersecurity space. Consider it almost like market research. Understanding public sentiment and trends can reveal potential threats as they just begin appearing on the horizon.
5. Support Investigations
Dark web investigations are vital in the sense that evidence from previous attacks can be utilized to prevent future attacks. Threat actors leave behind plenty of evidence as they go about their business. Therefore, some OSINT tools are designed specifically to support investigations. They can track digital footprints, gather evidence, be utilized to conduct background checks, and more.
6. Visualize Intelligence
The sheer amount of data OSINT tools can gather is mind boggling. To make sense of it all, some tools are tasked with visualizing intelligence by way of dashboards and other presentations that highlight key findings and connections. In essence, the tools distill important data into bite sized chunks and present it in a way that makes sense to security teams.
Use Cases for OSINT Tools
Improving cybersecurity is a primary goal for OSINT in general. Cybersecurity teams leverage OSINT tools to make their jobs easier. But there are other use cases for the tools:
- Fraud Prevention – Organizations in the financial services sector rely heavily on OSINT for fraud prevention purposes.
- Criminal Investigations – Law enforcement agencies around the world leverage OSINT to aid their criminal investigations. The high volume of data available to them is invaluable.
- Brand Protection – In addition to cybersecurity, companies often utilize OSINT tools to help protect their brands. The tools help them keep track of public sentiment and incidents of brand abuse.
- Journalism – Even the journalism industry makes use of OSINT tools to do what they do. The in-depth research capabilities the tools offer provide journalists with information they would otherwise not be able to access.
Use cases are almost endless when you stop and think about it. Indeed, they all point to why you and your organization need OSINT tools.
Threat Actors Aren’t Going Away
It all boils down to the simple fact that threat actors are not going away. If anything, they are becoming more aggressive and sophisticated. Every time an attack vector is thwarted, they start working on a new way in. It is a never ending back-and-forth that will continue for as long as the world relies on digital technologies linked by the internet.
Regardless of the size of your organization or the scope of its mission, the threat of being attacked is very real. It doesn’t make sense to sit back and wait until an attack arrives before doing something. Both OSINT and the tools that drive it initiate a proactive approach to stopping attacks. Being proactive means winning the battle.
