OPEN SOURCE INTELLIGENCE (OSINT) AS A STRATEGIC INSTRUMENT FOR ANALYSIS, DECISION-MAKING, AND PUBLIC SECURITY
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.36776/ribsp.v9i23.345Keywords:
intelligence, intelligence analysis, public security, strategic decision-making, OSINTAbstract
Open Source Intelligence (OSINT) has emerged as one of the core components of contemporary intelligence activities, particularly in an environment defined by hyperconnectivity, rapid information flows, and the exponential growth of publicly available data. This article provides a comprehensive analysis of the foundations, methodologies, and practical applications of OSINT, examining classical intelligence cycle models and comparing them to the Brazilian doctrinal approach. It discusses the categorization of open sources, criteria for assessing informational reliability, and the role of technological tools in producing strategic knowledge. The study highlights the importance of critical analysis, information triangulation, and the cognitive competencies required of intelligence analysts, with special emphasis on the application of OSINT in combating complex crimes such as cultural heritage trafficking. It concludes that OSINT is essential for modernizing intelligence, improving decision-making, and strengthening public security policies.
References
BIMFORT, M. T. A definition of intelligence. Studies in Intelligence, v. 2, p. 75–78, 1958.
BÖHM, I.; LOLAGAR, S. Open source intelligence: introduction, legal, and ethical considerations. International Cybersecurity Law Review, v. 2, p. 317–337, 2021. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1365/s43439-021-00042-7
CARLISLE, R. Encyclopedia of intelligence and counterintelligence. Routledge, 2005.
CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY (CIA). The IC OSINT Strategy 2024-2026. 2024. Disponível em: https://www.cia.gov/static/9d89dd9a4fe41b63cfab00c5191a8803/IC-OSINT-Strategy.pdf
CHAINEY, S.; RATCLIFFE, J. GIS and crime mapping. John Wiley & Sons, 2005. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/9781118685181
DORTON, S. L.; FROMMER, I. D.; GARRISON, T. M. A theoretical model for assessing information validity from multiple observers. In: 2019 IEEE Conference on Cognitive and Computational Aspects of Situation Management (CogSIMA). IEEE, 2019. p. 52-58. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1109/COGSIMA.2019.8724242
EUROPEAN UNION. What is OSINT: Open-source intelligence? European Data, 2022. Disponível em: https://data.europa.eu/en/publications/datastories/what-osint-open-source-intelligence
FINANCIAL ACTION TASK FORCE (FATF). Annual Report 2022-2023. 2023. Disponível em: https://www.fatf-gafi.org/en/publications/Fatfgeneral/FATF-Annual-report-2022-2023.html
GHIONI, R.; TADDEO, M.; FLORIDI, L. Open source intelligence and AI: a systematic review of the GELSI literature. AI & Society, v. 39, p. 1827–1842, 2023. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00146-023-01628-x
GIBSON, S. Open source intelligence. RUSI Journal, v. 149, p. 16-22, 2004. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/03071840408522977
GOLBECK, J. Introduction to social media investigation: a hands-on approach. Syngress Publishing, 2015. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-801656-5.00019-6
HENRICO, S.; PUTTER, D. Intelligence collection disciplines – a systematic review. Journal of Applied Security Research, v. 19, p. 1–25, 2024. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/19361610.2023.2296765
HWANG, Y. et al. Current status and security trend of OSINT. Wireless Communications and Mobile Computing, v. 2022, p. 1–14, 2022. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1155/2022/1290129
JENSEN, C. J.; McELREATH, D. H.; GRAVES, M. Introduction to intelligence studies. London: Routledge, 2017. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315116884
KOVARIK, V. Imagery intelligence (IMINT). Brno: University of Defence, 2011.
LAVIGNE, V.; GOUIN, D. Visual analytics for cyber security and intelligence. Journal of Defense Modeling and Simulation, v. 11, p. 175–199, 2014. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/1548512912464532
LEGG, S.; HUTTER, M. A collection of definitions of intelligence. Frontiers in Artificial Intelligence and Applications, v. 157, p. 17–24, 2007.
LOWENTHAL, M. M.; CLARK, R. M. The five disciplines of intelligence collection. Sage, 2015.
MARIUTA, S. Principles of security and integrity of databases. Procedia Economics and Finance, v. 15, p. 401–405, 2014. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/S2212-5671(14)00465-1
McDERMOTT, Y.; KOENIG, A.; MURRAY, D. Open source information’s blind spot: human and machine bias in international criminal investigations. Journal of International Criminal Justice, v. 19, p. 85–105, 2021. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/jicj/mqab006
MONTENARH, J.; MARSDEN, S. Unmasking the oligarchs – using open source data to detect sanctions violations. Journal of Economic Criminology, v. 3, p. 100055, 2024. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jeconc.2024.100055
MPALA, D. K. Combating disinformation in modern conflict reporting. 2023. Disponível em: https://nla.brage.unit.no/nla-xmlui/handle/11250/3119493
NORTH ATLANTIC TREATY ORGANIZATION (NATO). NOSINT Handbook. 2002. Disponível em: https://archive.org/details/NATOOSINTHandbookV1.2/mode/2up
OAKLEY, D. P.; ROGG, J. Spreading the “smog of war”: the impact of propaganda, social media, and OSINT on U.S. civil-intelligence relations. Intelligence and National Security, v. 39, n. 3, p. 539–553, 2024. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/02684527.2024.2322803
PACINI, C.; STOWELL, N. F. Panama Papers and the abuse of Shell entities. In: PURDA-HEELER, L.; SAADI, S. (eds.). Corporate fraud exposed. Emerald Publishing Limited, 2020. p. 361-382. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/978-1-78973-417-120201023
PASTOR-GALINDO, J. et al. The not yet exploited goldmine of OSINT. IEEE Access, v. 8, p. 10282–10304, 2020. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1109/ACCESS.2020.2965257
PHYTHIAN, M. Understanding the intelligence cycle. Routledge, 2013. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203558478
PLATT, W. A produção de informações estratégicas. Tradução de Álvaro Galvão Pereira e Heitor Aquino Ferreira. Rio de Janeiro: Biblioteca do Exército; Livraria Agir Editora, 1974.
PLLANA, D. Expanding entire volume of knowledge. Global Journal of Human-Social Science, v. 19, n. 8, p. 32–42, 2019.
RØNN, K.; SØE, S. Is social media intelligence private? Intelligence and National Security, v. 34, p. 362–378, 2019. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/02684527.2019.1553701
SABRY, F. Gestione del ciclo dell’intelligence. Un Miliardo Di Ben Informato, 2024.
SARI, A. Context-aware intelligent systems for fog computing environments. In: MAHMOOD, Z. (ed.). Fog computing. Springer, 2018. p. 205–255. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-94890-4_10
SENEKAL, B.; KOTZÉ, E. Open source intelligence for conflict monitoring. African Security Review, v. 28, p. 1–19, 2019. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/10246029.2019.1644357
SMITH, C. L.; BROOKS, D. J. Security science: the theory and practice of security. Butterworth-Heinemann, 2013.
TABATABAEI, F.; WELLS, D. OSINT in the context of cyber-security. In: Open Source Intelligence Investigation. Springer, 2016. p. 213–231. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-47671-1_14
THOMAS SMITH, W. Encyclopedia of the Central Intelligence Agency. Infobase Publishing, 2003.
TOMINSKI, C.; SCHUMANN, H. Interactive visual data analysis. A K Peters/CRC Press, 2020. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1201/9781315152707
TRISOLINI, M. Intelligence di polizia: Le forze dell'ordine come human sensors. Società Italiana di Intelligence, 2020. Disponível em: https://press.socint.org/index.php/home/catalog/book/2020_12_trisolini
TROTTIER, D. Open source intelligence, social media and law enforcement. European Journal of Cultural Studies, v. 18, p. 530–547, 2015. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/1367549415577396
VAN PUYVELDE, D.; TABÁREZ, R. F. The rise of open-source intelligence. European Journal of International Security, p. 1-15, 2025. Disponível em: https://doi.org/10.1017/eis.2024.61. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/eis.2024.61
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2026 Renato Pires Moreira, Luiz Augusto Vieira de Oliveira, Luiz Carlos Ferreira

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.

