Article · 28 November 2019 · 3 min read · Katarzyna Kucia

Using OSINT in business

OSINT (open-source intelligence) means intelligence gathered from public sources. In practice, you use publicly available sources to obtain data and information. It can serve various purposes and use more or less advanced tools. OSINT can be used in business, and sometimes it is even necessary.

How can OSINT be used to verify business partners?

OSINT lets you check whether an entity exists and who is authorised to represent it, as well as its VAT payer status or entries in debtor registers.

One of the basic tasks that can be carried out with OSINT is verification of entities or individuals. This covers both potential and current business partners, clients and employees. The starting point should be checking whether a given entity exists at all and who is authorised to represent it. OSINT also helps you check, for example, VAT payer status or entries in debtor registers.

It is an effective way to reduce the risk of starting to work with another company. With a potential employee, it makes sense to compare the experience, any academic achievements and the skills listed in their CV with reality.

What does information monitoring in OSINT involve?

Information monitoring means tracking the market, your industry, competitors and your own brand, which helps you spot emerging trends, growth opportunities and obstacles.

Information monitoring is also part of open-source intelligence. It can cover different areas. You can monitor the market or your industry to stay up to date with what is happening, for example, at your competitors. This helps you spot emerging trends and growth opportunities or, on the contrary, obstacles that could hinder the company's growth.

Monitoring the market and competitors also makes in-depth analysis possible. This is useful, for instance, when planning a new product or service, and it gives valuable support to business processes. It also helps you adjust or create an effective marketing strategy. With monitoring, your strategy can take into account what is already in the market and what competitors are doing, or help you exploit a gap in the industry. This gives you a chance to stand out.

Monitoring should also cover your own company or brand. By checking what appears about you online, you can make sure that no undesirable information is out there. This means, for example, data that should not be public but for some reason can be found with a web search engine. These could be employees' e-mail addresses, price lists or offers that are not intended for external communication.

How do you ensure high-quality OSINT information?

Rely mainly on well-known, reliable sources and always verify the information you have gathered critically.

Using publicly available sources well is not about collecting as much information as possible, but above all about getting high-quality information. That is why you should rely mainly on well-known, reliable sources. Even so, you should always keep a critical approach and verify what you have gathered. Suitable tools can make this process easier and faster.

Can OSINT work in a small company?

OSINT is flexible enough to work in a wide range of industries and in companies of all sizes.

These are just examples of effective use of OSINT in business. The method is flexible enough to work in a wide range of industries and in companies of all sizes. Among other things, it helps you get a good picture of the company's environment, identify emerging trends early and prepare an appropriate marketing strategy.