Course 03.0 · Beginner

Intro to OSINT

Open source intelligence from the ground up: what it is, the laws and ethics around it, the investigation cycle, collection techniques and sources, the dark web, verifying and reporting what you find, staying safe while you research, and how to shrink your own footprint.

Who it's for: Anyone starting out in security, investigations or threat intelligence. No prior experience needed.

9 sections · 48 lessons · 9 lab guides

Start with lesson 1.1 Slide deck (PowerPoint, 109 slides) 1.1 MB Slide deck (PDF, earlier 114-slide version) 484.9 KB

What's in it

For instructors

Suggested teaching order

Foundations and Legal & Ethical Boundaries first: every lab depends on the rules set here.
Methodology, then Collection Techniques, then Sources: the core skill set.
Verification & Reporting: turning collection into trustworthy findings.
OPSEC: before any live research or dark web material.
Dark Web & Threat Intel: after OPSEC and legal are covered.
Defending Against OSINT: flips the perspective; a good closer.

Lab rules (every section)

Passive techniques only, unless a lab explicitly says otherwise and the target is authorized.
Approved targets only: yourself, consenting classmates, instructor-provided or instructor-owned targets, purpose-built practice sites.
Don’t share findings about real people outside class.

Tools, platforms and laws change quickly. Anything the writers couldn’t fully confirm is marked (verify before class); check those before you teach them.

How to use it

Learning on your own? Go in order. Every lesson opens with its goals and ends with key takeaways and references.

Teaching it? Each section ends with a lab guide: setup, steps, timing and debrief questions.

Free to use, copy, change and teach. Security For the Folks dedicates this course to the public domain under CC0 1.0 Universal: no permission or credit needed. Quoted material and the sources it links to belong to their own authors.

Intro to OSINT

What's in it

1.0 OSINT Foundations

2.0 Legal & Ethical Boundaries

3.0 OSINT Methodology

4.0 Collection Techniques

5.0 OSINT Sources

6.0 Dark Web & Threat Intel

7.0 Verification & Reporting

8.0 OPSEC

9.0 Defending Against OSINT