S02 E04: Breaking Down Systems, Breach Data Dumps, A.I., OSINF vs OSINT, and Tech Job Interviews

OSINT with ShadowDragon & Digital Tools For Modern Investigations

About this Episode

Hosts:
Daniel Clemens, ShadowDragon CEO
Elliott Anderson, ShadowDragon CTO
Nico Dekens, ShadowDragon Director of Intelligence and Innovation Collection (aka Dutch_OSINTguy)

This time around the guys get together and talk about breaking down systems, especially as it relates to online data. You might be surprised to discover how social media algorithms are self-radicalizing people, computer experts are not what they used to be, and artificial intelligence could be headed down a destructive path.

They visit the past with a look at what open source intelligence was like ten years ago and glimpse what the future might look like with artificial intelligence and Apple Vision Pro goggles. It is all here as three old school open source intelligence investigators once again look at the world through the perspective of analytical intelligence.

Reasons we are seeing a recent increase in hacker and breach data activity, likely due to:
• School summer break gives kids more free time
• Ukraine war personnel returning to computers from battle lines
• Hacker message boards feuding and hacking each other

Here is what we are seeing when we interview computer job candidates:
• Many claim to be an “expert of experts” without the underlying basic knowledge
• These days people rarely build computers from parts – Apple security may be part of that
• Programmers throw around the term API and then cannot explain an API

Nico gives us a glimpse of the evolution of his OSINT work:
• Used to manually log into various accounts to make them look active daily
• Over time the rise of hundreds of viable platforms required scaling account activity
• Now finds that AI and ML results are outdated, biased, or untrue and does not use them for OSINT

The guys discuss modern day pros and cons of OSINT data collection:
• Elliott finds people trust their niche communities and reveal more in those platforms
• Content is moving from text to photos, moving images, and multiple languages, creating challenges
• Analysts need to understand various AI programming languages and methodologies to vet the assumptions that produced the results
• OSINT data collection processed through artificial intelligence is being questioned and invalidated in courts

Social media continues to influence society in unchecked ways:
• Social media algorithms have become quicker and more comprehensive in showing content that feeds your interests
• People are essentially becoming self-radicalized online through constant reinforcement of their beliefs
• Terrorist groups are getting better at planting seeds pushed by algorithms

The potential for chaos and societal disruption is increasing:
• Overloading systems and organizations are old concepts being applied in new ways through technology
• Immigration policies need to address feelings of displacement, accelerated by slow processes and online radicalization
• The creation of fake AI-generated content has the potential to push unstable people into violent action

The guys continue the in-depth discussion, further exploring challenges and scenarios brought on by technology, especially that crossing into the world of OSINT.

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Thank you for listening.