Open Source Intelligence

Artifice_Eternity writes: "Time magazine is running a story highlighting the US government's neglect of open source intelligence, or OSINT. OSINT includes stuff on the Internet and in various newspapers and periodicals, as well as "gray literature" (limited-availability publications like dissertations, local phone directories, etc.). It also includes foreign-language experts, and commercial data (satellite maps, news archives, scientific research). The mass of data to be crunched indicates how intelligence is an information processing problem in today's world."

Comments

Well

[wiredog]

I know the Secret Service reads kuro5hin. They hauled one guy in for questioning after a post he made there.

Open Source != Open Source

[bokmann]

The governments use of the word Open Source is different than what we mean...

To the intelligence community, something like Time Magazine is an open source of information. Open, because everyone can have it.

A phone tap, classified information from another agency, a spy, etc are closed sources of information.

This does not mean that they are reading Slashdot, or reviewing the Linux source code. (I'm sure 'they' ARE, but thats not what this term means...)

Net-based OSI

[libre lover]

Here's a somewhat in-depth think-tank article, "Considering the Net as an Intelligence Tool (Open Source Intelligence) (pdf format) I found that focuses on Internet-based OSI and espionage, dating back to 1996.

OSI is nothing new

[BoneFlower]

I remember 5 years ago sitting in the Navy/Marine Corps Intelligence training center as a young PFC(Private First Class) and having drilled into our head that we must look at open sources to develop a full intelligence picture. Even our closing practical app exercise included simulated CNN and reuters news bits for us to analyze. Exercises I was involved with when in the fleet included those. On 9/11, our intelligence officers first orders included one to keep the TV on and tuned to CNN and MSNBC 24/7 for the forseeable future.

As for not translating korean stuff, well I remember these were unclassfied, if you can ever track down some of the north korean radio transcripts, they are worth a laguh and a look into the North Korean mindset.

While open source intelligence may not get the attention it deserves at the highest levels, it isn't as badly neglected as this article seems to think.

I'm not sure how detailed I can legally get on this point, so I'll be general. Some of this reluctance to use false sources may be due to false alarms such things have caused in the past. Some of our enemies will manipulate the open sources in an attempt to cause us to react to a perceived threat. It worked for us in WWII with the whole landing at Calais deal, and worked against us recently in the middle east(thats the bit I can't be more specific on).

hyperbole alert

[denny_d]

(the U.S. does not have military maps for 90% of the world.)
this is bunk
there are four levels of military maps the lowest is available openly 1:100000
the next layer 1:1000 is supposed to be opened but recent events will probably change that
layers go 1:100
and 1:10 in terms of coverage accuracy
The US has the world maps covered, as do the French, Russians, UK etc. most gov'ts sell and trade data (for a price) to most anyone with enough geld.
dgd

Open Internet Sources

[Nameis]

Some good sources of intel on the web are:

The Drudge Report - Hey, he links to the important and interesting stuff in the mainstream media and breaks the stuff they won't report. What's not to like?

Stratfor.com - Great, clean analysis that is hard to find elsewhere. Drawback - has one free article each day on their site; full access requires a subscription of $80-$120. Still cheaper than ignorance or Jane's.

Debka.com - Provides interesting intel on the Middle-East from an Israeli perspective.

Anyone else have any favorite newshound/intel links?

Re:Neither Open Source nor Intelligent

[BoneFlower]

Open source in the context of intelligence information has nothing to do with open source in the context of software. In the context of intelligence, open source is simply information that other governments and organizations don't try to keep secret.

An example- The US military is constantly preparing for a potential war in Korea. This involves updating our intelligence picture of the korean peninsula. WE use closed sources(classified sattelites, spy planes, Jame Bond type ops) and open sources(New reports, public speeches, publicly availabble maps, etc... even books). Open source intelligence is simply that information about a potential issue that is publicly available.

The Atlantic Monthly covered this a month ago.

[himself]

The Atlantic Monthly magazine covered this a month ago in a story that's on the web at http://www.theatlantic.com/issues/2002/02/fallows. htm
And why should anyone be surprised that they're using common sense _as well as_ your spare CPU cycles to find out what's going on outside those smoked-glass windows?

Re:Neither Open Source nor Intelligent

[jmb-d]

This is quite funny on two levels:

• It's a lot of "take" and not much "give" on an international level, i.e. not at all open source (unless you take Microsoft's use of BSD code as "open source")

*sigh*

"Open Source" in this context means that it is publicly available -- it has absolutely nothing to do with Open Source software.

Re:Open Source Intelligence?

[PhilHibbs]

I think the phrase "Open Source Intelligence" pre-dates the phrase "Open Source Software".

Re:Open Source Intelligence?

[johnlenin1]

You're right. Open source intelligence, also known as OSINT, has been around since at least the 1930's.

Here's more information.