OSINT for Financial Investigations and Fraud Detection: Techniques and Best Practices

Open-Source Intelligence Techniques for Financial Investigations and Fraud Detection

Open-Source Intelligence (OSINT) techniques can be highly valuable for financial investigations and fraud detection.  Whether your financial institution is in Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, or Cleveland, there are many ways to leverage OSINT in this context.  Here is a list of various techniques that investigators can use:

OSINT Data Collection and Aggregation

OSINT tools collect and aggregate information from publicly available data sources which can provide valuable context and intelligence for investigations.  In the context of financial investigations and fraud detection these include:

• Social Media Platforms
• Blogs and Forums, such as Reddit.
• Traditional Media (news articles, TV, radio)
• Government Records
• Academic Journals
• Company Registries
• Sanctions List

OSINT Digital Footprinting

Digital footprinting helps to create a detailed profile of the subject under investigations activities and can potentially reveal suspicious patterns.  To get this digital footprint of your subject, investigators can analyze:

• Social Media Accounts
• Geolocation Data
• Lists of Associates and Connections
• Email Addresses and Phone Numbers

OSINT Transaction Tracking

Transaction tracking can uncover irregular fund transfers and connections between suspicious accounts. Investigators can use OSINT to follow financial transactions by cross-referencing:

• Public Records
• Financial Websites
• Internal Organizational Records

OSINT Corporate Network Mapping

Corporate network mapping reveals potential shadow ties and reduces money laundering risks.  By scanning corporate registries and other public databases, investigators can:

• Visualize Organizational Structures
• Identify Key Individuals within Companies
• Cross-Reference with Sanctions Lists
• Detect Politically Exposed Persons (PEPs)

OSINT Blockchain Analysis

When dealing with cryptocurrency there are many challenges when navigating complex blockchain data.  Investigators can overcome these challenges by:

• Identifying Malicious Crypto Wallets
• Tracking Transactions Across Networks
• Detecting Connections Between Addresses

OSINT  Knowledge Graphs

A knowledge graph unifies data from various OSINT sources into a single network.  This technique can be quite powerful as it acts as a single source of truth, combining internal and external data.  Knowledge graphs allow investigators to:

• Reveal New Insights and Connections
• Accelerate Investigations by Centralizing Data
• Increase Confidence by Providing a Comprehensive View

OSINT Financial Investigations and Fraud Detection Best Practices

Financial Institutions and Law Enforcement agencies can integrate these OSINT techniques into their investigative processes to enhance their ability to detect and combat fraud and money laundering.  To effectively use these OSINT techniques, you will want to:

• Develop standardized workflows for data collection and analysis.  This involves creating step-by-step procedures for gathering information from various open sources, evaluating source relevance and reliability, and synthesizing it into actionable intelligence.  Standardized workflows ensure consistency, efficiency, and thoroughness across investigations.
• Use visualization tools to map complex networks and map relationships.  Visualization tools allow investigators to represent connections between entities, transactions, and other data points. Network visualization tools can reveal hidden patterns and associations that may not be apparent from raw data alone, helping to uncover fraud rings or money laundering schemes.
• Combine OSINT with internal data sources for a comprehensive view.  This involves correlating open-source intelligence with proprietary financial data, transaction records, and customer information. Integrating external and internal data provides a more complete picture of potential fraud or suspicious activity, enabling a more accurate risk assessment.
• Stay updated on emerging OSINT tools and techniques.  This requires ongoing professional development to keep abreast of industry practices, collection methods, and analytical approaches.  As online platforms and technologies evolve, investigators must continually adapt their OSINT skills to access and leverage the latest sources of information.
• Ensure compliance with privacy regulations when collecting and using data.  This involves implementing policies and procedures to protect personal information, obtain proper authorizations, and limit data collection to what is necessary and proportional.  Adhering to relevant privacy laws like GDPR helps maintain ethical standards and legal compliance in OSINT activities.

At Convoy Group our expertise and experience in intelligence analysis and investigations allows us to support organizations in financial investigations and fraud detection.  We utilize powerful OSINT tools for investigating people, objects, locations, and events (POLE data), and link analysis tools to help uncover the hidden relationships that are critical in these types of investigations.