Open Source Intelligence (OSINT) is the collection and analysis of information that is gathered from public, or open, sources. OSINT is primarily used in national security, law enforcement, and business intelligence functions and is of value to analysts who use non-sensitive intelligence in answering classified, unclassified, or proprietary intelligence requirements across intelligence disciplines. It’s defined by the U.S. Director of National Intelligence and the U.S. Department of Defense as “produced from publicly available information that is collected, exploited, and disseminated in a timely manner to an appropriate audience for the purpose of addressing a specific intelligence requirement.”

As social engineers, we utilize OSINT to help aid and strengthen our social engineering engagements. There is endless amounts of information out there for all of us to find. The more information (data) that we can obtain; the better our pretexts can be. The better our pretexts are; the higher chance of success for the social engineer.