Open Source Intelligence Resources & Insights
Explore expert insights, practical guides and professional resources covering open source intelligence, OSINT tools, research methodologies and intelligence analysis.
Created by experienced intelligence practitioners, our resources are designed to help analysts, investigators, security professionals and researchers develop more disciplined approaches to finding, verifying, analysing and reporting information.
Whether you are building your existing knowledge or exploring professional OSINT qualifications, start with practical insights grounded in real intelligence work.
Featured Open Source Intelligence Resources
Start with our latest guides, analysis and practical resources covering the methods and challenges shaping professional OSINT today.
Intelligence grading compared: 5x5x5, 3x5x2, Admiralty, PHIA
Intelligence grading compared: 5x5x5, 3x5x2, Admiralty, PHIA Every mature intelligence organisation has a scheme for saying how much it trusts a source, how much it believes a piece of information,…
Show your working: notes and evidence capture in OSINT
Show your working: notes and evidence capture in OSINT A finding you cannot show your working for is an anecdote. This guide covers why OSINT analysts keep a research log,…
Is this source any good? Five checks for OSINT beginners
Is this source any good? Five checks for OSINT beginners Finding information is the easy bit. Deciding whether to believe it is where beginners come unstuck. A five-question checklist, how…
Reverse image search basics: why one engine is never enough
Reverse image search basics: why one engine is never enough A photo turns up captioned “happening now”. Reverse image search is how you find out whether it is new, old…
Cheat Sheets
Open Source Intelligence Insights from Practitioners
Obsidian Arc Training is the education arm of Obsidian Arc, a UK-based OSINT and intelligence services firm.
Our training is shaped by decades of collective experience across government, operational environments, investigations and private-sector intelligence work. We bring the same practitioner-led perspective to our resources.
That means our insights are focused on how open source intelligence is actually researched, assessed and communicated in professional environments, rather than theory alone.
Before we taught the work, we did the work.
Frequently Asked Questions
All your questioned answered. Have another? Feel free to reach out.
What is open source intelligence?
Open source intelligence (OSINT) is intelligence produced by collecting, verifying, analysing and reporting information from publicly available sources. Professional OSINT uses structured methodologies to assess reliability and turn information into intelligence that can support informed decision-making.
What are OSINT tools used for?
OSINT tools can support the collection, investigation and verification of publicly available information and digital footprints. However, professional intelligence work also requires research methodology, critical analysis and judgement to determine whether information is reliable and relevant.
What is OSINT research?
OSINT research is the structured process of identifying and collecting relevant information from lawful open sources. Professional research goes beyond simply searching online by applying accountable methodologies and assessing sources before information is used as intelligence.
What intelligence analysis techniques are used in OSINT?
Intelligence analysis techniques help professionals assess information, identify patterns, challenge assumptions and place individual findings into context. These techniques help transform collected information into clear, defensible intelligence.
Are there recognised OSINT qualifications in the UK?
Yes. Obsidian Arc Training delivers a Level 3 Award in Open Source Intelligence (OSINT), developed with NOCN as an Ofqual-regulated qualification. Learners complete formal assessments and receive a nationally recognised qualification.
Who can benefit from learning open source intelligence?
Open source intelligence skills are relevant to intelligence analysts, investigators, security and risk professionals, financial crime teams, law enforcement, journalists and researchers. OSINT training can also support service leavers, career changers and junior analysts seeking to develop recognised intelligence skills.