Online Identity Information: A Key OSINT Component for Investigations

Many government employees need access to high-quality OSINT (publicly available) information to perform the duties associated with their jobs: 

• Threat-intelligence experts need this information to gather a subject’s global history, connections, aliases and social media handles to keep tabs on them before they are able to commit a crime. 
• Law enforcement officers use this type of information to find suspects and crack crime rings. 
• Benefits-fraud investigators often rely on this information to determine whether a claimant is who they purport to be.

However, many of the legacy tools used to access OSINT information are severely lacking in several key areas: 

• Global coverage
• Email addresses
• Mobile phone numbers 
• Social media usernames

This information can be crucial for investigators and researchers: Investigations may start in one country, but they often cross borders. And being able to make connections between email addresses, mobile phone numbers and social media usernames can help uncover the identity of the person behind them.

‍Pipl offers unmatched coverage in these areas‍

With coverage in 150 countries, 1.7 billion email addresses, 1.9 billion mobile phone numbers, and 4 billion social-media usernames, Pipl offers investigators and researchers a powerful tool for finding OSINT identity information.

With Pipl SEARCH, they can search with one piece of information – a name, an email address, a telephone number, or a social media username – and find everything: our online identities are collections of information that are statistically likely to be associated with one another. They include identity data such as a name, current and past addresses, mobile and landline phone number, social-media usernames, known associates, and more.

Pipl SEARCH can be applied in number of useful ways:‍

Locate a Person of Interest – start with one piece of information – even a non-identifying social media username – and find their address and phone number.‍

Uncover Associations Between Persons of Interest – see if people ever shared the same address, or if they’re members of the same online group.‍

Prove or Disprove Claims or Testimony – determine if online sources indicate activity or behavior that conflicts with what’s been reported to an investigator.‍

Collect information to enrich a case file – ensure that you have a complete list of a subject’s mobile phone numbers and social media usernames.‍

Try Pipl SEARCH for yourself‍

Pipl SEARCH is a powerful tool that allows investigators and researchers to make connections that would have been difficult or impossible with other means, saving them valuable time so they can serve their country more effectively.‍