Unlocking Hidden Talent: OSINT Tools for Recruiters
Explore OSINT and AI tools for recruiters, including OSINT Industries, Forensic OSINT Screen Capture, Google Cache alternatives, and Chrome extensions.
Today's newsletter is all about OSINT and AI tools for recruiters. If you’re not familiar with Open Source Intelligence (OSINT), it’s basically a way to gather information from publicly available sources.
Recruiters often use these OSINT tools to track down contact details for candidates who aren’t on LinkedIn. I won’t get into the nitty-gritty of how to use these tools, but I definitely encourage you to check them out.
Before we dive in, if you’re using LinkedIn, make sure to check this setting: Data for Generative AI Improvement. Big shoutout to the LinkedIn copywriter—I'd probably call it “Let Us Use Your Data Without Your Knowledge,” but their version sounds way better!
If you’d rather not share your data with LinkedIn, you can easily opt out by following these steps: Settings and Privacy > Data Privacy > Data for Generative AI Improvement (OFF).
Just keep in mind that this is currently available only for US users, but it might roll out to other markets soon.
LinkedIn is going to start using AI more in their products, so be sure to check your settings before your data gets used for AI training.
OSINT Industries: Real-Time Data Retrieval and Analysis
OSINT Industries is a platform that specializes in providing OSINT tools and resources to enhance investigations. The platform's main focus is on real-time data retrieval and analysis, allowing users to investigate email addresses, phone numbers, and usernames with high accuracy.
Key Features
Real-Time Data Access: OSINT Industries boasts unmatched accuracy in data retrieval, with access to information from over 300 sources worldwide. This feature is particularly valuable for law enforcement agencies that require timely and precise intelligence for their investigations.
Privacy Focus: The platform prioritizes user privacy by employing robust encryption methods and ensuring that search results are not stored, protecting users' personal information during their investigative processes.
Comprehensive Tools: Users can compile detailed digital profiles by linking various accounts associated with a subject's email or phone number. The platform also offers visualization tools that map digital footprints and timelines of online activity, providing a richer context for investigations.
Personal Experience and Insights
Upon trying the tool with my own email addresses and even some scammers who misused my name, I was amazed by the results. The tool revealed access to services I hadn't used in years, highlighting the vast amount of data we share about ourselves online.
If the target person shares a significant amount of information, the tool can provide hints about their other email addresses and phone numbers, allowing investigators to reverse engineer and collect enough data to obtain their contact details.
However, it is crucial to ensure GDPR compliance and use any information wisely. Seeing the extent of information that this and similar tools can uncover about an individual may make you reconsider using all these services with your real email address.
The Forensic OSINT Full Page Screen Capture
The Forensic OSINT Full Page Screen Capture is a Chrome extension designed to enhance OSINT investigations with accurate and efficient digital evidence collection. This tool offers a range of features to streamline the investigative process.
Key Features
Screen and Video Captures: Conduct user-controlled captures from platforms like YouTube, TikTok, and more, supporting up to 200 scrolling screens for extensive documentation.
Automatic Image and Source Code Captures: Seamlessly capture images and source codes to ensure thorough evidence collection.
Keyword Alerts and Key Value Discovery: Set alerts for specific keywords and extract important data like user IDs and advertising IDs.
Behind this tool is another awesome person from the OSINT community, Ritu Gill. The team did a really great job with this tool!
OSINT Industries and Forensic OSINT Full Page Screen Capture are two powerful tools that can significantly enhance investigations across various sectors. By leveraging real-time data retrieval, comprehensive digital profiling, and efficient evidence collection, investigators can streamline their processes and obtain crucial insights. However, it is essential to use these tools responsibly and comply with data protection regulations to ensure the integrity of investigations while respecting individuals' privacy rights.
Google Cache
Although Google removed the cache feature some time ago, Nico Dekens, Another respected person in OSINT shared a great tip about still being able to access cached pages. By using the following URL format, you might be able to find pages cached by Google:
https://www.google.com/search?q=cache:<url of interest>For example, to find the cached version of fullstackrecruiter.net, you would use:
https://www.google.com/search?q=cache:fullstackrecruiter.netExample: fullstackrecruiter.net
Internet Archive's Wayback Machine
In addition to the remnants of Google Cache, Google Search is now adding links to archived websites in the Internet Archive's Wayback Machine. The Wayback Machine hosts billions of archived webpages and is a very helpful tool for looking at older versions of websites. This allows you to see what may have changed on a site compared to past versions, which in some cases can go back decades.
The addition of Wayback Machine links to Google Search results is welcome news for those lamenting the disappearance of the cached pages link. It offers an alternative way to access historical versions of websites. (Source: theverge.com)
Seamless Integration of Gemini AI Chatbot with Google Chrome
If you are a user of both Google's Gemini AI chatbot and the Chrome browser, you can now take advantage of a handy feature that streamlines your interaction with the chatbot.
To use this feature, simply type your query directly into the address bar, preceded by the words "@gemini." Once you press Enter, Chrome will load the chatbot's website, and Gemini will begin generating a response to your query.
This integration has a minor issue with text encoding, particularly in languages that use diacritical marks, such as Czech. While Gemini can usually understand the meaning of the text despite the encoding issues, its responses may vary.
In some cases, Gemini will provide a reply in comprehensible Czech. However, there are instances where the chatbot interprets the garbled input as an indication that the output should be equally incomprehensible.
Despite these occasional hiccups, the ability to interact with Gemini directly from Chrome's address bar is a convenient addition for users who frequently engage with the chatbot.
Three Extra Tools
These three tools will totally amaze you! They're awesome for research, and the WhatsApp tool is super handy when you want to check if the numbers in your database can actually receive messages from you.