Internet Searches for Vetting, Investigations, and Open-Source Intelligence

TOOLS, TECHNIQUES, AND TRAINING

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3. How can the online data be veried? This is the classic intelli-

gence dilemma, because there may be only one source for an item

that could cause an adverse judgment. In processing this type

of information, the intelligence collector must look for separate

reports and sources conrming the report, and try to nd other

ways that the item can be veried. Sometimes, the Internet can

provide evidence hiding in plain sight, as in the case of a sub-

ject with several reported instances of foreign travel to countries

hostile to the United States, who had posted numerous photos of

herself in various scenes at tourist sites in those countries.

In a way, too much has been made about the parts of the Internet ...