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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.
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