Learning OSINT Techniques
I've heard it often said that "Learning OSINT is like drinking from a firehose" and it's true!
Over the past several months, I have immersed myself in OSINT training. It is amazing how well OSINT fits my desire to learn new things, figure out how things work, and use what I have learned to help make the world better.
My OSINT Training
I have completed 28 courses to date in the MOT course library. I gained many valuable skills and processes working through this training. The MOT courses are broken up into perfectly sized modules that you can work through on a lunch break, and walk away from each module with some new skills that you can immediately put to work. You will find plenty of links and practice exercises to help you get hands-on experience. There are also some FREE courses to try out, as well as some great FREE bookmarklets that you can easily add to the Firefox browser.
OSINT Academy
I had the opportunity to enroll in the 8-week OSINT training offered by the OSINT Academy. I wasn't sure what to expect when I started, but I knew it would be good! This was completely different than module-based training. The Academy has some great instructors who are easily accessible and eager to help.
This training is set up with weekly reading and report writing assignments. The OSINT Academy teaches you how to conduct efficient and effective due diligence and OSINT research. You then learn how to compile that information into a concise, informative, and professional report.
The OSINT Academy provides students with a Slack channel which was very valuable for accessing the instructors, as well as networking will classmates.
Next Level OSINT
Mishaal Khan offers several OSINT courses within the Just Hack Training platform. These courses provide some different methodologies, tools, and processes. Mishaal walks you through each module with an easy-to-follow video, as well as a good number of links to add to your collection. Mishaal covers mostly passive OSINT processes, but does share a minimal amount of teaching on more aggressive processes. Mishaal provides fair warning of the dangers of conducting such searches without proper legal permission.
Mishaal Khan Courses
OPSEC
Beginner Level OSINT
Level Up OSINT
Next Level OSINT
Each of these training platforms provides amazing training. They all use a variety of tools, processes, and methodologies. Having participated in each of these different styles of training, I can draw from each specifically, depending on what type of investigation I am conducting. I recommend each of these training platforms, and I hope that you will enjoy them as much as I have.