This extended abstract presents an approach that explores the usefulness of using Twitter, one of the most commonly used social media platforms, as a source of data for an untargeted Open Source Intelligence (OSINT) investigation. Twitter is one of the most active data sources and its short texts mean data can be added, downloaded and analysed speedily. The method presented here performs a random twitter search and downloads a large number of tweets. These tweets are analysed and visualised in an attempt to identify any interesting information that can be useful in decision making and action planning and execution. Experiments reveal that even a simple approach such as the one discussed in this work can be helpful.

Published in: Internet Technology and Secured Transactions (ICITST-2018)

• Date of Conference: 10-13 December 2018
• DOI: 10.2053/ICITST.WorldCIS.WCST.WCICSS.2018.0009
• ISBN: 978-1-908320-94-0
• Conference Location: University of Cambridge, Churchill College