OSINT with ShadowDragon & Digital Tools For Modern Investigations

Podcast Summary: ShadowDragon - Malware Alert on Social Media

In this episode of the ShadowDragon podcast, Nico "Dutch OSINT Guy" Dekens delves into a recent surge in malicious online activity linked to trending topics on social media platforms such as X (formerly Twitter), Meta (Facebook), and Instagram. The discussion centers around a disturbing trend observed on August 8th, where malicious actors hijacked popular hashtags, including those related to the UK riots and other global events, by posting deceptive content designed to lure users into clicking dangerous links.

These malicious posts often feature images flagged as "sensitive content," which, when clicked, direct users to a series of redirects that ultimately lead to scam sites, frequently with pornographic content. Nico warns listeners about the common characteristics of these posts, which include accounts with English-sounding usernames followed by a series of numbers and profile pictures of Asian-looking women. Nico also highlights how these tactics have been used across various events, from the Paris Olympics to the ongoing Ukraine-Russia conflict.

The episode emphasizes the importance of caution when engaging with such content online and provides insights into how malware analysis tools, like Any.Run and VirusTotal, can help identify the threats posed by these malicious links. The host concludes by urging listeners to stay vigilant and avoid falling prey to these social media scams.

Listeners are encouraged to like, subscribe, and share the ShadowDragon podcast and to reach out to the host, known online as "Dutch OSINT Guy," for more information.

Podcast Summary

In this episode of the ShadowDragon podcast, Nico Dekens discusses the current geopolitical tensions and disturbances monitored through online platforms. The focus is on the recent actions of Israel against Hamas leaders, which have caused significant unrest and propaganda, particularly from Iran. The podcast highlights the use of AI-generated imagery in influence campaigns and the possibility of escalating conflicts involving rocket attacks and military mobilization in the region.

The episode also touches on the unrest in the United Kingdom, sparked by false narratives following a deadly stabbing incident. Nico emphasizes the role of social media in spreading misinformation and the importance of monitoring these platforms to understand the underlying causes and actors involved in these conflicts.

Overall, the podcast provides an overview of the global tensions involving Israel, Iran, Hezbollah, and Hamas, as well as the social unrest in the UK related to migrant communities. Nico stresses the significance of early warning and monitoring to stay informed and prepared for potential escalations.

Please like, subscribe, and share the podcast to stay updated on these important developments.

ShadowDragon OSINT Geopolitics and More Podcast Summary

Host: Nico Dekens, “The Dutch OSINT Guy” (follow Nico on X: @dutch_osintguy)

Episode Focus: Critical cybersecurity advisory on state-sponsored Russian media using advanced software for foreign malign influence activities.

Key Points Covered:

Closing Remarks:

Thank you for tuning in to the ShadowDragon OSINT Geopolitics and More Podcast. See you in the next episode!

Show Notes:

Follow ShadowDragon on social media for more up-to-date news and information

Key Points Discussed:

• Monitoring and Disruption Efforts: OpenAI collaborates with open-source intelligence practitioners to monitor internet activity and identify potential misuse of their language models by nation-states and other actors. They aim to disrupt sophisticated threats through continuous improvements in their safety systems and collaboration with industry partners.

• Recent Trends: OpenAI has detected and disrupted operations from actors in Russia, China, Iran, and a commercial company in Israel. These operations, including ones named "Bad Grammar" and "Doppelganger," used AI to generate content but failed to engage authentically with audiences.

• Techniques and Tactics: The actors use AI to produce high volumes of content, mixing AI-generated and traditional formats, and faking engagement by generating replies to their own posts. Despite these efforts, they struggled to reach authentic audiences.

• Defensive Strategies: OpenAI employs defensive design policies, such as friction-imposing features, to thwart malicious use. They also share detailed threat indicators with industry peers to enhance the effectiveness of disruptions.

• Case Studies: Examples include Russian and Chinese networks targeting various regions with limited engagement, and an Iranian network generating anti-US and anti-Israeli content. These operations highlight the ongoing challenge of AI misuse.

• Open Source Intelligence: Dekens discusses his work with Shadow Dragon, including a white paper on using open-source intelligence to identify and monitor troll and bot armies. He explains how prompt error messages can be a key indicator of malicious activity.

The Shadow Dragon Special Edition Podcast

Introduction:

Military Alert in Europe:

Global Protests:

Elections and Political Disturbances:

Conclusion:

Nico, the Director of Intelligence Collection Innovation, is joined by Daniel Clemens, CEO, David Cook, Director of National Security, and Elliott, the CTO of Shadow Dragon.

The team discusses the dynamic nature of the internet and how their tools must continuously adapt to these changes. Elliott shares insights into the complexities of developing scalable and effective open-source intelligence tools that can keep up with the rapid evolution of online platforms and data.

Nico and the team bring up the feedback from customers and some of our favorite capabilities of Horizon, the OSINT Platform. Here are some highlighted capabilities:

• Speed of Horizon is unmatched

OSINT is vital for due diligence and knowing your customers, employees, and partners. The guys talk about some examples and move into some current events, including the protests on college campuses. Publicly available information (PAI) offers a window into peoples’ digital lives to identify bad habits.

The guys talk about influence operations from adversarial nations and the linkages in the digital world. As we all live more online, adversarial nations and bad actors have injected malign information meant to influence people ultimately outcomes.

David brought up a propaganda playbook that fits into today’s modern, digital world where people are being influenced from never-ending streams of online information without, or instead of, validating ideas among friends, family or small groups to provide a check on actions. The concept is discussed on the backdrop of campus protests.

Daniel stresses the importance of mindset – whether you’re an investigator, entrepreneur, or artist, “mindset is everything in winning.” Having a mindset that doesn’t need external validation from society creates better outcomes. “You have to be believe that you are going to win, and be surprised when you lose,” has been Daniel’s mindset and the mindset he encourages other to take taking on a task. Daniel’s investigative experience draws on this mindset to ask the right questions to get the right answers.

This podcast is available in video and audio versions at your favorite podcast outlet, popular video platforms, and the ShadowDragon website. Subscribe to the podcast to stay up to date on the latest.

Thank you for listening.

Hosts:

Joe Stradinger, EdgeTheory CEO

Daniel and David traveled to University of Mississippi last month to the inaugural National Center for Narrative Intelligence (NCNI) Summit hosted by EdgeTheory. The guys talk about the Summit, Joe’s path to becoming EdgeTheory’s founder and CEO, and the importance of storytelling and narratives in a dynamic world.

This time around, we spoke about Narrative Intelligence and how OSINT is similar in finding sources but can sometimes produce different products. Today, the amount of publicly available information (PAI) is expanding every day, which gives people, companies, and governments more information to synthesize and investigate than ever before. ‘Chatter’ online can grow and form narratives at incredible speed and resonance, creating often-times outsized impacts in society, markets, elections, and so much more.

Listen in as Daniel queues in on EdgeTheory’s “Intercontinental Ballistic Narratives,” or ICBNs, to ask who is the greatest manipulator of narratives? Joe breaks down the different ways EdgeTheory sees between Russia, China and Iran utilizing ICBNs to subvert Western Nations. As geographic borders fade in today’s online struggle, adversaries ‘spoof’ or manipulate where the origin of their cognitive attacks on populations come from, making it more difficult to quantify risk.

Listen for more insight on:

• Advanced Persistent Manipulators (APMs)

Visit EdgeTheory’s website to learn more: https://edgetheory.com/

This podcast is available in video and audio versions at your favorite podcast outlet, popular video platforms, and the ShadowDragon website. Subscribe to the podcast to stay up to date on the latest.

Thank you for listening.

Special Guest: Joe Stradinger.

About this Episode

Hosts:

In this podcast episode, the hosts and guests delve into various topics, from the importance of rest and mindfulness to the challenges of investigative work and the impact of technology on attention spans. Through personal anecdotes and professional experiences, they highlight the need for patience, methodical workflow, and critical thinking in investigative processes, emphasizing the value of asking the right questions rather than seeking immediate answers. They also discuss the evolving nature of technology and its effects on human cognition, cautioning against the pitfalls of constant stimulation and advocating for a balance between productivity and mental well-being. Furthermore, they draw parallels between investigative work and historical societal shifts, reflecting on the tension between industrialism and agrarian workflows and the implications for modern-day practices. Ultimately, the episode offers valuable insights into navigating the complexities of investigative work in an increasingly fast-paced and technology-driven world, emphasizing the importance of rest, reflection, and methodical inquiry.

About this Episode

Hosts:

In our last podcast of 2023, the ShadowDragon crew talked about the importance of veterans’ service, disinformation, and gave some of our best predictions for 2024.

One of ShadowDragon’s newest employees, David Cook, talks about running a non-profit focused on Special Operations Forces (SOF) advocacy:

• The Special Operations Association of America (SOAA.org) is a veteran service organization that advocates for the past, present and future SOF community.

Automation in OSINT, according to Nico, the Dutch OSINT Guy:

• OSINT is an arduous process – automation can be a powerful tool in highlighting what’s important.

Dependency of Large-Language Models (LLMs), and other tech:

• Utilizing LLMs for analysis must be used with caution – there are AI ‘hallucinations’ that return false information.

“2024 is gonna be…crazy”, Daniel Clemens, CEO of ShadowDragon

• People are not going to be able to trust what hear and see at the end of 2024 due to deepfake technology advances, segregation in the digital world manifesting itself in the physical world.

Elliott’s OSINT recommendations:

• The popularity of OSINT will spurn regulatory action and we’ll see laws made and legal decisions on OSINT.

Daniel’s OSINT recommendations:

• The value of discernment will be ‘gold’ and being able to deconstruct what information is in front of them will need to be developed and honed.

David’s OSINT recommendations:

• More people will find they’ve been utilizing open-source information and creating subsequent intelligence than previously thought, re-valuing OSINT as a sector to the upside, broadening and expanding what OSINT is.

Nico’s OSINT recommendations:

• More and more people will understand that tradecraft in OSINT is so important.

Listen to the full podcast for all the guys’ book and podcast recommendations.

This podcast is available in video and audio versions at your favorite podcast outlet, popular video platforms, and the ShadowDragon website. Subscribe to the podcast to stay up to date on the latest.

Thank you for listening.