What is OSINT? A Beginner’s Guide to OSINT for Indians

Introduction

OSINT, which stands for Open-Source Intelligence, is a new field in India. Fewer than a hundred people among our 125 million population know about OSINT. While the world is growing fast, we are still stuck in closed-source intelligence, and that too, with access limited to just a few government agencies, when most of the work can be done in minutes using OSINT and is accessible to anyone.

In this guide, we will learn about OSINT, how it can be used in different fields in India, the essential tools and techniques, challenges, and ethical considerations to be kept in mind while using OSINT, and how to get started in OSINT.

Understanding OSINT

OSINT stands for Open-Source Intelligence. Open source refers to data that is publicly available to everyone without the need for approval or permission from anyone, and intelligence refers to the ability to understand, learn, and think about how to use the data that we collect using open source.

OSINT can be further categorized into multiple subfields, such as SOCMINT (Social Media Intelligence), GEOINT (Geolocation Intelligence), and HUMINT (Human Intelligence). We will discuss this in detail in our upcoming blogs.

Let’s understand this with one short example. Assume you received a call from an unknown number. They presented themselves as a hiring manager in a tech company. They are trying to convince you that they will hire you with a salary package of 5LPA if you pay them one lakh right now as a bribe.

Now let’s see how we can use OSINT here. We can use reverse caller lookup apps like Truecaller, where most of the time it alerts and shows you that a number is spam, and shows their spam reports if the scammers are not smart and are using the same number repeatedly. Apart from that, you can use all call lookup apps to find out, and in most cases, they will disclose to you the associate's name with that number. One more thing you can try is to search for that phone number in any payment app, and from there, you can find their banking name and a few other interesting details. We will understand this in detail in our upcoming blog, How to Investigate Indian Phone Numbers Using OSINT.

How OSINT is used in different fields

OSINT can be used in almost every sector in India that is related to technology, and sometimes in traditional sectors, like the military, judiciary, and law enforcement. It’s all a game of perception and has some limitations based on the country's legal laws. OSINT can be used in KYC in almost every digital sector, whether e-commerce, finance, or tech. Journalists can use it to check facts and detect misinformation and disinformation. It can be used by law enforcement in cybercrime. It can be used in competitive intelligence by companies. It can be used to identify fraud and scams by individuals.

1. Law Enforcement

• Tracking Criminals & Terrorists – Analyzing social media activities and monitoring online threats.

• Cybercrime Investigations – Tracing online scams, phishing attacks, and dark web activities.

• Counter-Terrorism – Preventing radicalization through digital surveillance.

• Example: In 2019, Indian authorities used OSINT to track WhatsApp groups spreading misinformation during elections.

2. Cybersecurity

• Identifying Data Breaches – Monitoring dark web forums for leaked Indian user data.

• Detecting Phishing & Scam Websites – Uncovering fake banking and e-commerce sites.

• Monitoring Hacktivist Groups – Tracking cyber threats targeting Indian institutions.

• Example: Indian cybersecurity firms use Shodan and Censys to detect misconfigured databases.

3. Business Intelligence

• Competitive Analysis – Tracking competitors' online activities and financial trends.

• Due Diligence & Background Checks – Verifying vendor and business partner credentials.

• Brand Reputation Management – Monitoring online mentions, customer reviews, and PR crises.

• Example: Indian startups use OSINT to check if a vendor has been involved in legal disputes before signing contracts.

4. Journalism

• Fact-Checking & Misinformation Detection – Verifying viral news, deepfake videos, and propaganda.

• Tracking Financial Scandals – Investigating corporate frauds through public financial records.

• Political & Election Monitoring – Exposing fake social media accounts and tracking misinformation campaigns.

• Example: During elections, Indian journalists used OSINT to uncover fake accounts spreading misinformation.

5. Financial Investigations

• Unmasking Online Scammers – Identifying Ponzi schemes, WhatsApp loan scams, and fake investments.

• Detecting Money Laundering Patterns – Analyzing suspicious transaction histories.

• Verifying KYC Data – Ensuring the authenticity of customer details in financial institutions.

• Example: The Indian government used OSINT techniques to track a large-scale cryptocurrency scam.

6. Personal Security

• Checking Digital Footprint – Identifying exposed personal information online.

• Protecting Against Identity Theft – Checking if personal details appear in data breaches.

• Social Media Privacy Audits – Ensuring social media accounts don’t reveal sensitive data.

• Example: Many Indian professionals use tools like LeakCheck and Have I Been Pwned to check for email leaks.

7. Geospatial Intelligence (GEOINT)

• Natural Disaster Monitoring – Tracking floods, landslides, and earthquakes via satellite imagery.

• Traffic & Crowd Control – Using real-time OSINT for public safety and event management.

• Tracking Illegal Construction & Deforestation – Analyzing land use changes through satellite data.

• Example: During Cyclone Yaas, Indian agencies used OSINT to track the storm’s movement and issue early warnings.

Essential OSINT tools and techniques

OSINT tools and techniques are a complete field in themselves, and it’s difficult to cover them in a blog post like this. Let’s just go through some popular OSINT tools and techniques here. We will cover this topic in detail in our upcoming free eBook, which will launch next month and specifically cover OSINT tools and techniques.

Let’s start this with some popular free open-source OSINT tools -

GHunt - It’s a CLI based tool that takes email as a input and gives you details about that email like owners’ name, profile picture, last account update date and time, and google map reviews(if the user had given to any public place), google play games info(if exists).

PhoneInfoga - It’s a CLI-based tool that takes a phone number as input and tells you basic information like country, area, carrier, line type, if it’s a VOIP number, and tries to find its online reputation. Read this blog for more details.

Haveibeenpwned—This is a website used to check if this email has been part of any data leak.

Google Dorking- It is not a tool, but a technique for filtering out Google search results by parsing the query in a unique format. Read this blog for more details.

Whois Lookup - It’s a technique to find domain registrant details(finding details of the owner who owns that domain)

Truecaller - It is a phone number lookup search engine with a vast database of Indian phone numbers. It can be used to find the name associated with any phone number.

We will learn about more awesome OSINT tools and techniques in our upcoming blogs.

OSINT challenges and ethical considerations in India

While OSINT is an interesting field, just like any other field or sector, it has its own limitations and challenges. While no established laws direct what’s legal and illegal in OSINT, we have privacy and security laws that impact our work in OSINT.

Apart from that, some platforms limit access to their data, like LinkedIn limiting profile visibility(but yeah, it can be easily bypassed via some techniques). OSINT can also be used by cybercriminals and threat actors, which is a serious concern.

Some things that you should keep in mind are -

• Do not scrape or access private data without consent.

• Use only publicly available or legally accessible data.

• Inform organizations about data leaks instead of exploiting them.

• Personal information should not be used for harm.

• Use multiple sources to confirm findings.

• Ensure neutrality in investigations.

Conclusion

Let’s sum up this blog with a short conclusion. OSINT is an awesome field; it’s a very interesting and useful field that can help us make India better by using it ethically. But at the same time, we shall also follow the ethical guidelines that govern what’s right and what’s wrong as per the legal laws. Continue to learn and improve your OSINT skills with us. Join OSINT India as a member now, and let’s grow the OSINT community together.