Kirbstr

List of academic databases and search engines

A list of dozens of the largest online tools for finding scholarly articles in a wide variety of disciplines.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of...

#research #science

How to Build the Knowable: Investigating Jeffrey Epstein’s Network Beyond the Myth of the Client List - SV EOTI Introduction: The Myth of the “Client List” and the Messy Truth For years now, people have obsessed over

A great article by Sam Liles. You don't need a "list"...

sveoti.net/how-to-build...

Sinaloa cartel used phone data and surveillance cameras to find FBI informants, DOJ says A hacker working for the Sinaloa drug cartel was able to obtain an FBI official's phone records and use Mexico City's surveillance cameras to help track and kill the agency's informants in 2018, the U.S. Justice Department said in a report issued on Thursday.

According to a DOJ IG report released this week, the Sinaloa cartel identified an FBI official working at the U.S. Embassy in Mexico, tracked him via phone location data, tapped into Mexico’s surveillance camera network, & killed an unspecified number of informants.
www.reuters.com/world/americ...

Plessas Experts Network - Online Learning Portal Plessas Experts Network's Open Source and Social Media training community for investigators, researchers and security professionals. Search and monitor social media through simple tools and innovative...

Join us for our upcoming #OSINT classes! In July-a virtual session on social media updates. A comprehensive virtual OSINT course in September. For in-person learning, September in Las Vegas, or October in Texas. Don’t miss out on the chance to enhance your investigative skills!

academy.plessas.net

This still cracks me up 🤣

Move Fast and Break Kings

Have you, or has anyone you know, accidentally fallen for an AI-generated sermon or speech attributed to Pope Leo XIV?

If so, I would love to hear from you for a story. My DMs here are open, and I am available on Signal at billmccarthy.25.

🕵️ ARCA is pleased to be collaborating with @bellingcat.com for it's first ever series of OSINT art crime challenges.Test your open source research skills with these challenges, unlocking new ones by completing the previous one in the series.

challenge.bellingcat.com

Pro-AI Subreddit Bans 'Uptick' of Users Who Suffer from AI Delusions “AI is rizzing them up in a very unhealthy way at the moment.”

New from 404 Media: even mods of a pro-AI subreddit are having to ban mentally unwell users who believe ChatGPT is letting them talk to God, etc. www.404media.co/pro-ai-subre...

New hell just dropped- there is apparently a company that will work with kinda-sorta-famous people to make an "AI clone" of them that people can pay to "have a conversation" with.

I do not like the future.

This is fascinating

Thanks Pat!

Some who look at my search augmentation work with LLMs say it can't "replace reporting". I agree. But that's kind of like someone looking at web search in 1996 and saying it can't "replace reporting". It can't -- but if you don't learn to use it effectively for your work, your work will suffer.

This one was fun. I got to bring up diversifying skill-sets. And Tim talked about social engineering and the @layer8conference.com

Seriously, surround yourself with artists — their presence will reward you with inspiration and ideas. I spent last night hanging out with some photography friends I haven't seen in ages. Not only did I have a terrific time, but I woke up today feeling rejuvenated and inspired.

Unsplash image of the Earth, mostly the nightside with a tracery of city lights on every continent.

OK, this is wild.

In September 2023, geophysicists across the world started monitoring a very odd signal coming from the ground under them.

It was picked up in the Arctic. And Antarctica. It was detected everywhere, every 90 seconds, as regular as a metronome, for *nine days*.

What the HELL?

1/

Reads Can one of our researchers solve our latest challenges within an hour? Bellingcat Open Source Challenge, Live with Giancarlo Fiorella, Director for Research and Training , 14th of May , 5pm CEST/11am EDT on Patreon.com/Bellingcat

Join our Director for Research and Training @giancarlofiorella.bsky.social as he takes on the latest Bellingcat challenges live on Patreon. Can he solve all five within the hour? Open to all Patreon members we will be streaming at 5pm CEST/11am EDT, Wednesday May 14th on Patreon.com/Bellingcat

How Signal, WhatsApp, Apple, and Google Handle Encrypted Chat Backups Encrypted chat apps like Signal and WhatsApp are one of the best ways to keep your digital conversations as private as possible. But if you’re not careful with how those conversations are backed up, y...

End-to-end encryption is a great way to protect the privacy of your conversations, but how (or if) those chats are backed up matters too.

YouTube video by Bendobrown How to Find Ground Photos with Google Maps: Iran’s Plane Graveyard Case Study - Let’s Geolocate #7

Sometimes it's hard to know what's really going on in a satellite image, especially in this case in Iran. So I've made this #OSINT tutorial on how to find ground photos and spot the clues in them to find out what's happening. www.youtube.com/watch?v=cGJ7...

Cool open-source investigative tool I just learned about: alltext.nyc. It lets you search any text found in Google Street View images from 2007 to 2024— graffiti, shop signs, street text, you name it. Just type in what you see, and see what pops up.

AI of dead Arizona road rage victim addresses killer in court Clip of Chris Pelkey, who died in 2021, says: ‘I believe in forgiveness’ after his sister fed an AI model videos of him

What in the hell???

Sister gets AI generated model of her dead brother to give **victim impact startment** in court. Accused gets 10 years, and the judge applaued use of AI. Arizona—> www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...

List of Official Business Registers

Incredibly huge list of official government services for finding information about companies and individual entrepreneurs in different countries and regions of the world.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of...

#osint #corpint

The Age of Realtime Deepfake Fraud Is Here Fraudsters are able to change their race, facial hair, voice, and more during live video calls with very little effort. Scammers are already fooling the elderly and verification systems.

The Age of Realtime Deepfake Fraud Is Here www.404media.co/the-age-of-r...

DOJ canceled the training for law enforcement that helps prevent online child predators from getting at our children. Doesn’t make us safer. Doesn’t make govt more efficient.

Government censorship comes to Bluesky, but not its third-party apps ... yet | TechCrunch Government censorship has found its way to Bluesky, but there's currently a loophole thanks to how the social network is structured.Earlier this

Earlier this month, Bluesky restricted access to 72 accounts in Turkey at the request of Turkish govt authorities, according to a recent report by the Freedom of Expression Association.

techcrunch.com/2025/04/23/g...

Illustration of an adult and three children sitting around a small fire, with a darkened and damaged cityscape in the background, accompanied by a caption that reads "Yes, the planet got destroyed. But we had some great Earth Day celebrations."

Happy Earth Day!

What are you doing differently for the Earth today?

Popelander

Join the Bellingcat Discord Server! Come hang out with open source research enthusiasts, share knowledge and experiences, and learn lots! | 34675 members

This Thursday we're talking to Bellingcat's Connor Plunkett and The Sunday Times' @johnmooneyirl.bsky.social about investigating a drug cartel's online presence. Join us live to ask your questions at 5pm CEST/11am EDT: discord.gg/bellingcat?e...

If you have a minute to spare today ⬇️