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White Paper

USING OSINT DURING NATURAL DISASTERS

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USING OSINT DURING NATURAL DISASTERS

GLOSSARYAI Artificial IntelligenceOSINT Open Source IntelligenceUSAID the U.S. Agency for International Development WEBINT Web Intelligence

When natural disasters occur, it is essential to have access to current, up-to-date

information to understand the scope and details of the situation and to take timely

action. Due to the wide array of sources available today, ranging from web feeds,

blogs, TV- and radio-stations to social media platforms, government agencies and

first responders can quickly inform and respond. Open sources provide a fast and

efficient way to assess the situation of those affected by the natural disaster. They

enable geographic mapping, which allows for more targeted responses and shorter

decision-making cycles. Leveraging social media is a crucial addition to the standard

approaches to disaster management communication and existing communication

infrastructures.

Open Source Intelligence (OSINT) solutions are used by government agencies to

collect and process data from publicly accessible sources (such as social media

platforms) to deploy first responders in a timely and efficient manner.

However, this is a highly complex and demanding task since these open sources

have multiple dimensions such as modality or language used, which requires

specific processing expertise.

In this white paper, you will learn more about:

• The impact of natural disasters

• The use of OSINT for disaster relief operations

• AI-powered OSINT solutions

INTRODUCTION

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USING OSINT DURING NATURAL DISASTERS

NATURAL DISASTERS AND SOCIAL MEDIA

Natural disasters kill on average 60,000 people per year and are responsible for

0.1% of global deaths. High losses of human life are. This high number of fatalities

can be reduced significantly through earlier prediction, more resilient infrastructure,

emergency preparedness, and response systems.

The sharing of information between public safety organizations and the impacted

population is key in case of natural disasters such as floods, earthquakes, and

hurricanes. Over the last few years, social media and the information-sharing

options they offer have evolved into critical elements of emergency preparedness

and effective response. The use of social media by victims and eyewitnesses to

provide public safety and relief organizations with real-time information based on

geographic data. Authorities and organizations can use this information for planning

their response strategies, allocate resources in relevant areas, and inform the public

in real-time.

Figure 1 Natural Disasters 1970 - 2018

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USING OSINT DURING NATURAL DISASTERS

The aftermath of the 7.0 earthquake in Haiti (in 2010) has demonstrated for the first time

that social media can play a crucial part as data-generating vehicles for disaster relief

operations (Source: Pew Research Center). Workers produced a geographic map of the

affected areas by using social media and location-based websites and apps in order to

provide the emergency services with information regarding the critical areas where they

were needed most. Since then, monitoring social media has proven to be a useful measure

for government agencies during crisis situations.

In case of the occurrence of unexpected events, such as natural disasters or human

atrocities, active users can react in real-time by uploading or sharing comments, photos,

audio and video recordings, meaning that the amount of data generated and related to the

event will be huge. These immediate and dynamic reactions of users provide insight into

the severity of the event and can help to identify present or potential factors that could

cause the crisis situation to destabilize. Since it is a top priority to obtain information on the

situation's awareness, real-time social media monitoring systems are useful for providing

snapshots of the status of the natural disaster. They can be used as an open-source

intelligence (OSINT) platform for early warnings.

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USING OSINT DURING NATURAL DISASTERS

OSINT SOURCES Open-Source Intelligence (OSINT) includes all publicly accessible sources of

information. Traditional mass media (e.g., television, radio, newspapers, books,

magazines) and specialized journals, academic publications, dissertations, conference

proceedings, company profiles, annual reports, company news, etc. are forms of

offline OSINT data sources.

Online OSINT data sources include online forums, blogs, social networking sites,

video-sharing sites, Whois records of registered domain names, metadata and digital

files, deep web resources, geolocation data, IP addresses, people search engines, and

anything else that can be found online. Especially social media is useful to provide

feedback on the occurrence of a trigger factor such as a natural disaster.

However, the use of open sources entails

collecting and processing huge amounts of

data. Generated data has four distinct

characteristics: volume, which is measured

in terabytes and petabytes; variety, which

encompasses structured data, semi-

structured data, and unstructured data;

velocity, which refers to the speed at which

open-source data is generated and

analyzed; and veracity, which relates to the

inherent instability of open sources.

Therefore, data collected from open sources

requires an innovative platform for

processing and analyzing in order to get

true insights into the status and scope of

the natural disaster and to enable timely

decision-making.

LEVERING OSINT “WE’RE LAGGING BEHIND VERY SERIOUSLY IN A POLICY FRAMEWORK FOR USING THIS DATA. IT’S NOT THAT WE CAN’T CATCH UP WITH WHAT’S HAPPENING, WE JUST NEED TO DO IT.“ Shadrock Roberts, a contractor with USAID

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USING OSINT DURING NATURAL DISASTERS

In case of a natural disaster, both online and offline OSINT must be processed and

managed. The image below represents a schematic media mining model (Source: IEEE

Computer Society)

Figure 2 Schematic Representation of a Media Mining Model

In order to cope effectively with the massive amounts of information and the abundance

of events, web AI-powered web intelligence (WEBINT) platforms have been launched to

collect and utilize information from the internet regarding targets, key subjects, and

geographic areas. Such a platform meets the primary requirements for collection of data

from multiple sources beyond the leading social media platforms, real-time access to

the information that is being monitored, the ability to collect data from specific accounts

of individuals and groups, geographic visualization on a map, and the ability to monitor

and send out alerts in real-time.

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USING OSINT DURING NATURAL DISASTERS

OSINT AND WEBINT SOLUTIONS

The WEBINT platform of Cobwebs Technologies conducts ongoing collection and

analysis of thousands of data and posts associated with a specific natural disaster.

Powered by AI and using machine-learning algorithms, the platform is programmed with

monitoring criteria such as ‘virtual fences’ that delineates relevant areas and keywords

associated with that disaster. The platform monitors and generates alerts to handle the

multitude of requests asking for urgent assistance based on data from social media,

personal details, addresses, and accurate locations of victims in the disaster area.

The use of such a real-time online monitoring system significantly improves the

efficiency of the assistance provided to the impacted population.

With the WEBINT platform, authorities can address the challenges that occur during nat-

ural disasters since common communication lines experience overload or disruption. By

collecting and processing massive amounts of web data openly accessible on e.g., social

media, the platform contributes to emergency awareness and effective response, as well

as vigilant monitoring of the status of a natural disaster in a specific region.

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USING OSINT DURING NATURAL DISASTERS

The geolocation discovery modules allow for easy

extraction of web content from geographically defined

location-based radiuses, via GPS-derived posts, photos,

videos, statuses, and more. The powerful AI tools geo-

locate text entities while offering enhanced geofencing

capabilities, analytics, and alerts.

Social media, websites, and other web layers are

continuously collecting new data and receive relevant

intelligence, insight, and alerts. The AI algorithms

conduct statistical calculations with learned models

offering predictive insights for quick and efficient

intervention.

By harnessing the power of social media, monitoring

and scanning networks in order to harvest relevant or

location-based chatter. Sifting through relevant

mentions on social media has improved the response

to crises and emergencies.

As social media activity escalates during times of

natural disasters, the platform leverages the data to

locate victims and provide them with necessary

emergency aid.

 

WE HAVE DEVELOPED A LAYER OF AI THAT ENABLES TEXT ANALYSIS AND ASSOCIATION WITH SPECIFIC LOCATIONS, AS WELL AS RELEVANT ALERTS. SUCH A WEBINT PLATFORM IS SUITABLE FOR A DIVERSIFIED RANGE OF EVENTS AND SITUATIONS, INCLUDING REAL-TIME MANAGEMENT OF NATURAL DISASTERS.

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ABOUT USCobwebs Technologies is a global leader in Web Intelligence providing innovative solutions

tailored to the operational needs of the public and the private sectors by identifying threats

and generating insights in real-time.

The Company’s advanced artificial intelligence and machine learning algorithms deliver

powerful threat intelligence by deciphering the intricacies of web layers and analyzing the

complex details of structured and unstructured data.

Its web intelligence platform monitors these vast sources of data for revealing hidden clues

and generating insights for intelligence-enhanced security to keep the world safer.

www.cobwebs.com

WORLDWIDE PRESENCE With our solution deployed worldwide, Cobwebs is making the online and offline world a

smarter and safer place.

Our AI-driven solution is implemented and adopted by leading law enforcement and national

security agencies, critical infrastructure brands, financial services and other sectors.

Our long-standing partnerships with industry leading global security and intelligence

providers is transforming the face of web intelligence.

Our impeccable customer service is partnered with robust technology, plus comprehensive

customer training that employs strategic methodology & veteran operational experience.