OSINT Roadmap: Beginner β Expert π΅οΈββοΈ
βββ Phase 1: Foundations (1-2 weeks)
β βββ What is OSINT & Ethics/Legal
β β βββ OSINT definition, types (SOCMINT, GEOINT, etc.)
β β βββ Laws (GDPR, Privacy, Ethics)
β β βββ OPSEC for investigators
β βββ Mindset & Critical Thinking
β β βββ Occam's Razor, Bias avoidance
β β βββ Mind Mapping (GitMind, XMind)
β βββ Basic Tools Setup
β βββ Browser (Firefox containers)
β βββ VPN Proxies
β βββ Note-taking (Notion/Obsidian)
βββ Phase 2: Basic Techniques (2-4 weeks)
β βββ Google Dorks & Advanced Search
β β βββ Operators, site:, intitle:, etc.
β β βββ Custom search engines
β βββ Username & Email Search
β β βββ WhatsMyName, Namechk, Holehe
β β βββ Email verification tools
β βββ People Search & Background Check
β β βββ Pipl, Spokeo, TruePeopleSearch (free alternatives)
β β βββ Social Media Profiling
β βββ Image & Reverse Search
β βββ Google Lens, TinEye, Yandex
β βββ Metadata extraction (ExifTool)
βββ Phase 3: Intermediate Skills (4-6 weeks)
β βββ Recon Tools Mastery
β β βββ Maltego (Community), Recon-ng, SpiderFoot
β β βββ Shodan, Censys, Zoomeye
β β βββ TheHarvester, Amass
β βββ Social Media OSINT
β β βββ Twitter/X, Instagram, LinkedIn, Facebook
β β βββ Geolocation from posts
β βββ Domain & IP Intelligence
β β βββ WHOIS, DNS enumeration
β β βββ Passive DNS (SecurityTrails)
β βββ Data Analysis Basics
β βββ Excel/Google Sheets for OSINT
β βββ Basic scripting (Python basics)
βββ Phase 4: Advanced Techniques (6-8 weeks)
β βββ Geospatial & Imagery OSINT
β β βββ Google Earth, Sentinel Hub
β β βββ Satellite imagery analysis
β βββ Dark Web & Threat Intel
β β βββ Tor browsing, Dread
β β βββ Leak sites monitoring
β βββ Automation & Custom Tools
β β βββ Python scripting for OSINT
β β βββ APIs integration (
Hunter.io, etc.)
β βββ Adversary Simulation
β βββ Purple Teaming with OSINT
β βββ Report Writing & Presentation
βββ Phase 5: Professional & Career Level
β βββ Case Studies & Real Projects
β β βββ Bellingcat style investigations
β β βββ CTFs (Trace Labs, OSINT CTF)
β βββ Certifications
β β βββ TCM Security Practical OSINT
β β βββ SANS FOR578 (if possible)
β β βββ Free certs from Basel Institute
β βββ Continuous Learning
β βββ Communities (OSINT Curious, Discord)
β βββ Newsletters (My OSINT News)
β βββ Tools updates (OSINT Framework)