OPSEC for Investigators: How to Stay Anonymous While Researching

Operational security — OPSEC — is the practice of protecting your own identity, location, and investigative activity while conducting research on a subject. For OSINT investigators and anyone conducting anonymous research methods online, it means ensuring that the act of researching someone doesn’t reveal to that person that they’re being researched, doesn’t expose your real … Read more

Google Dorking for Investigators: Advanced Search Operators

Google dorking is the practice of using advanced search operators to retrieve specific, targeted information from Google’s index that a standard keyword search would never surface — including cached pages, exposed files, specific file types, site-restricted results, and information buried in documents that aren’t linked from any visible page. Quick Answer: Google dorking uses operators … Read more

How to Verify Information Using OSINT

OSINT verification is the process of confirming whether a finding from open-source research is accurate — by measuring the reliability of the source it came from, comparing it against independent sources, and assigning a confidence level that reflects how well it has been corroborated. Quick Answer: Verification converts raw OSINT research into reliable intelligence. It … Read more

How to Build an OSINT Report

An OSINT report is a structured document that presents verified investigative findings derived from publicly available sources — separating confirmed facts from corroborated leads from unverified results, with every finding traced to its source and every source weighted by reliability. Quick Answer: An OSINT report is not a list of search results. It is a … Read more

OSINT Pivoting: How to Follow Data Connections Across Systems

OSINT pivoting is the investigative technique of using each newly discovered identifier as a new search entry point — systematically following data connections across independent record systems until every available pathway has been exhausted. Quick Answer: Pivoting transforms a name search into a network investigation. Start with one identifier, search it across relevant systems, collect … Read more

OSINT Workflow: The 8-Phase Investigation Framework

An OSINT workflow is a structured, repeatable sequence of research steps that transforms publicly available information into verified, actionable findings — beginning with a defined objective and ending with a documented output that can be reviewed, defended, and built upon. Quick Answer: Every effective OSINT investigation follows eight phases: define the objective, collect seed identifiers, … Read more

New Mexico Public Records: A Complete Research Guide

New Mexico public records are governed by the Inspection of Public Records Act (IPRA), codified at NMSA 1978, §§ 14-2-1 et seq. The law declares that “representative government is dependent upon an informed electorate” and that all persons are entitled to “the greatest possible information regarding the affairs of government and the official acts of … Read more

Alaska Public Records: A Complete Research Guide

Alaska public records are governed by the Alaska Public Records Act (APRA), codified at Alaska Stat. §§ 40.25.100–40.25.295. The APRA establishes that all public records are open to inspection and copying by any person, and that agencies must disclose records unless a specific statutory exemption applies. Alaska’s framework is notable for its broad applicability across … Read more

Hawaii Public Records: A Complete Reasearch Guide

Hawaii public records are governed by the Uniform Information Practices Act (Modified), known as the UIPA, codified at Haw. Rev. Stat. Chapter 92F. Enacted in 1988, the UIPA establishes both the public’s right to access government records and an individual’s right to access and correct personal records held by agencies. Hawaii’s approach to public records … Read more