Professional Certificate in Open-Source & Social Media Intelligence

What you will be able to do

• Apply an ethical, lawful OSINT and SOCMINT research workflow
• Investigate across major social platforms and recognize patterns
• Use advanced search and monitoring while preserving evidence
• Navigate the deep web safely with sound research hygiene
• Document open-source evidence defensibly for a case

What is inside

6 modules, 20 lessons. Each module ends in a graded quiz.

1. 01

   Fundamentals of Open-Source Intelligence

   An introduction to lawful open-source investigation, covering how to prepare a secure research environment, the intelligence cycle that turns raw data into usable findings, the major collection disciplines, and the privacy and data protection duties that govern every step.

   4 lessons · 8 quiz questions

2. 02

   Social Media Intelligence (SOCMINT)

   A practical guide to investigating across major social platforms lawfully, recognizing behavioral and network patterns, and following a repeatable ethical research workflow that protects both the analyst and the subject.

   3 lessons · 8 quiz questions

3. 03

   Mobile and App Awareness

   This module explains how mobile apps and chat platforms create and store evidence, introduces the basics of mobile forensics, and shows how to keep collection lawful, documented, and defensible.

   3 lessons · 8 quiz questions

4. 04

   Search and Monitoring Techniques

   This module teaches lawful, repeatable methods for advanced searching, social network discovery and ongoing monitoring, and defensible preservation of digital evidence. You will learn to build precise queries, track activity ethically over time, and capture findings so they survive scrutiny.

   3 lessons · 8 quiz questions

5. 05

   Deep Web and Safe Research Hygiene

   A plain-English look at how the web is layered into surface, deep, and dark, and how investigators build a clean, separated research environment with educational-level OPSEC so their work stays lawful, safe, and well documented.

   3 lessons · 8 quiz questions

6. 06

   Legal, Ethics, and Documentation

   This module covers the legal and ethical ground rules for lawful OSINT and SOCMINT work and shows you how to document social media findings so they hold up under scrutiny. You will leave with reusable workflows and forms for defensible collection.

   4 lessons · 8 quiz questions