Vetting Publicly Available Information in OSINT

Introduction

Publicly available information may contain a great deal of misinformation. One challenge in open-source intelligence (OSINT) is vetting publicly available information to determine what is true versus false. The question is: how does one vet information? In an age of information overload, knowing what is true and what is not can be challenging. With the rise of the internet, anyone can publish anything they want without going through the traditional channels of peer review and editorial oversight. As a result, it is more important than ever to be able to vet publicly available information. When it comes to OSINT, there are a few key things to keep in mind. To ensure decision makers have the best information possible, one must vet the information appropriately by considering the source, the evidence, and the motives of the information's publisher.

Consider the Source

In recent years, the amount of misinformation circulating online has grown exponentially (Lahby et al., 2022). With the rise of social media, it has become easier than ever for false information to spread quickly and easily. As a result, it can be difficult to know what to believe. When trying to determine the accuracy of a piece of information, it is important to consider its source. If it is coming from a reputable news organization or government website, it is more likely to be accurate than if it is coming from an anonymous blog or social media post. In short, one should conduct background checks on all intelligence before accepting it as truth. With so much false information circulating, this is more important than ever (Appel, 2014). However, sometimes one has to do more than accepting information from even reputable sources, because even reputable sources can traffic in fake news (Ibrishimova & Li, 2019). Considering the source is not just about checking off boxes but more about understanding what different sources may be trying to communicate based on self-interest.

For that reason, it is important to remember that all sources of information may have a bias or perspective that they serve in disseminating information (Ibrishimova & Li, 2019). This is not necessarily a bad thing, but it is something to be aware of when consuming news and information. Bias can come from a variety of sources, including the media outlet itself, the writer or reporter, and even the sources that are used in the piece (Ibrishimova & Li, 2019). When reading or watching the news, it is important to be aware of these potential biases so that you can make an informed decision about what to believe. Additionally, it is often helpful to seek out multiple sources of information on any given topic in order to get a well-rounded view. By being aware of the potential for bias in all sources of information, you can be a more informed and critical consumer of news and information.

Look for Corroborating Evidence

One question to ask is this: How does the information compare to everything else that is found (McKeown et al., 2014)? This question can help identify potentially significant pieces of information, as well as rule out irrelevant data. By carefully considering all of the evidence, investigators can ensure that they are making the best use of available resources and information. If multiple sources are saying the same thing, that is a good sign that it is true. However, if there are conflicting reports, that is a red flag indicating that one should do more research before believing anything.

Yet, conflict is likely to be the case more often than not in OSINT, due to the fact that there are many sources of information and each one may have its own agenda (Austen-Smith, 1993). As a result, it is important to take the time to verify any information that you find before making any decisions. There are a few ways to do this. First, one can check multiple sources to see if they are reporting the same thing. If they are, then there is a good chance that the information is accurate — unless, of course, the sources all funnel from one and the same origin, which can happen in the world of open-source information. Second, one can look for corroborating evidence. This could be things like photos or videos that support the claims being made. With this step, one is looking for independent evidence — that is, information outside of the original sources and unconnected to those sources. It is akin to doing independent research rather than trusting others to verify reports. Seeking corroborating evidence is essentially what a good journalist in the field does before running with a report: he or she verifies it by accumulating data from various places and examining it all together. Finally, if possible, one should try to speak to someone who was actually there. This can be difficult, but it can also be the best way to corroborate evidence. If one can track down someone who witnessed the event in question, that person can provide first-hand accounts that help confirm or refute the claims being made.

In short, investigators often have to piece together information from a variety of disparate sources. One way to corroborate OSINT data is to cross-check it against other data sources. For example, if one is investigating a person's online activity, one might check their social media posts against their browsing history. If one is investigating a company, one might check their website against financial filings. Another way to corroborate OSINT data is to compare it against known facts. For example, if one is investigating a person's online activity, one might check their social media posts against their publicly available biographical information. By looking for corroborating evidence, one can increase the accuracy and reliability of one's OSINT work. It is what any investigative reporter must do, and in OSINT one is every bit the investigative reporter (Revell et al., 2016).

Conclusion

By being mindful of several factors in OSINT work, one can help ensure that information is being vetted appropriately and effectively. Establishing provenance, veracity, reliability, and credibility are all essential to this work — as is the ability to obtain corroborating evidence. Provenance refers to the history of the information, including who collected it and how it was collected. This is important in order to determine whether the information is reliable and whether it has been tampered with. Veracity refers to the truthfulness of the information, while credibility refers to its trustworthiness. Considering the motive that various sources might have in publishing information is another tool an investigator has in this field. Motives can range from self-interest to honest reporting, but they always have to be evaluated on a case-by-case basis, because information travels swiftly and can be spread recklessly without thought — even by credible and trustworthy sources at times. Thus, every piece of evidence should be corroborated insofar as is possible. That is why, in order to establish veracity, it is often necessary to obtain supporting evidence from multiple sources. By taking these measures, OSINT practitioners can ensure that the information they gather is accurate and can be used to support their work.

References

Appel, E. J. (2014). Cybervetting: Internet searches for vetting, investigations, and open-source intelligence. CRC Press.

Austen-Smith, D. (1993). Information and influence: Lobbying for agendas and votes. American Journal of Political Science, 799–833.

Glassman, M., & Kang, M. J. (2012). Intelligence in the internet age: The emergence and evolution of Open Source Intelligence (OSINT). Computers in Human Behavior, 28(2), 673–682.

Ibrishimova, M. D., & Li, K. F. (2019, September). A machine learning approach to fake news detection using knowledge verification and natural language processing. In International Conference on Intelligent Networking and Collaborative Systems (pp. 223–234). Springer, Cham.

Lahby, M., Aqil, S., Yafooz, W., & Abakarim, Y. (2022). Online fake news detection using machine learning techniques: A systematic mapping study. Combating Fake News with Computational Intelligence Techniques, 3–37.

McKeown, S., Maxwell, D., Azzopardi, L., & Glisson, W. B. (2014, August). Investigating people: A qualitative analysis of the search behaviors of open-source intelligence analysts. In Proceedings of the 5th Information Interaction in Context Symposium (pp. 175–184).

Revell, Q., Smith, T., & Stacey, R. (2016). Tools for OSINT-based investigations. In Open Source Intelligence Investigation (pp. 153–165). Springer, Cham.