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10 Best Free OSINT Tools For Investigators and Researchers 2025
- Cybrvault
- 3 days ago
- 8 min read
Open-source intelligence (OSINT) is now an essential skill for investigators, cybersecurity analysts, journalists, and researchers. With the right tools, you can quickly and legally gather publicly available information about domains, individuals, organizations, digital infrastructure, and more.
This guide highlights the 10 best free OSINT tools available in 2025. For each tool, you'll find a detailed explanation, typical use cases, and at the end of each section, a convenient linked button (“Click here to get link”) so you can jump straight to the tool’s website.
1. Maltego CE (Community Edition)
Best for: Link analysis, relationship mapping, and visualizing network connections.
Maltego CE is a powerful graph-based OSINT tool built to reveal hidden relationships between entities such as people, email addresses, domains, and IPs. By running "transforms," investigators can automatically pull in public data and visualize it in a highly readable graph. This makes it easier to detect patterns, clusters, and connections that would otherwise be tedious to map manually.
Use cases:
Mapping social media or professional networks
Investigating cybercrime or threat actor infrastructure
Connecting domains, IP addresses, and organizations
Building a visual profile of a target’s digital identity
Why use it:Maltego CE is arguably one of the most intuitive OSINT tools for relationship mapping. Even the free “Community Edition” includes a wide set of transforms, making it highly useful for serious investigations.
Quick-start tip:Install Maltego CE, create a free Maltego ID, and begin by running transforms on a domain or email address. Gradually expand the graph, exploring related entities, and adjust transform settings as needed.
2. SpiderFoot (Open-Source Edition)
Best for: Automated reconnaissance, profiling, and aggregation of intelligence.
SpiderFoot is an OSINT reconnaissance tool built for automation. It draws from hundreds of data sources to collect information about IP addresses, domains, email addresses, usernames, and more. The open-source edition is fully functional and provides powerful modules to tailor recon to your investigative needs.
Use cases:
Scanning domains or IP blocks for exposed assets
Gathering intelligence on a person's digital footprint or organization
Automating risk assessments and report generation
Large-scale OSINT investigations with minimal manual overhead
Why use it:SpiderFoot allows you to run comprehensive OSINT sweeps with minimal human input: once configured and launched, it gathers data in the background and presents its results in categorized formats with risk scoring, letting investigators prioritize what matters most.
Quick-start tip:Install the open-source SpiderFoot edition, feed in your target (domain, IP, email), select modules that matter (e.g., passive DNS, reputation, BGP), and run a scan. Review output through the web interface or export reports as needed.
3. theHarvester
Best for: Rapid email and subdomain enumeration, surface-level reconnaissance.
theHarvester is a command-line OSINT reconnaissance tool that collects emails, subdomains, hosts, employee names, and URLs by querying public sources like search engines, PGP key servers, and public datasets. It’s lightweight, efficient, and frequently used in red-team or investigative operations.
Use cases:
Email harvesting for a specific domain
Discovering subdomains and hostnames
Building an initial reconnaissance data set on a target
Integration with other tools or scripts for further automation
Why use it:It’s fast, reliable, and frequently updated by the community. Given its simplicity, theHarvester fits easily into scripted workflows, making it an ideal choice for reconnaissance-focused phases of an investigation.
Quick-start tip:Launch the tool from your shell (e.g., theHarvester -d example.com -b google), specify your domain or target, and let it gather data. Later, use the results to feed other OSINT tools or manually review for accuracy.
4. Shodan
Best for: Discovering exposed devices, open services, and misconfigured infrastructure.
Shodan, often called the “search engine for internet-connected devices,” lets investigators query for exposed services, devices, and servers. This includes Internet-of-Things (IoT) devices, web cameras, industrial controllers, and more.
Use cases:
Identifying exposed services on public infrastructure
Scanning a target’s IP range for unsecured devices
Cyber threat surface assessment
Infrastructure reconnaissance and potential vulnerability discovery
Why use it:Shodan is unique in its focus on live, internet-connected devices. Unlike traditional web-based OSINT tools, it provides insights into devices broadcasting services, helping investigators understand an organization’s exposure.
Quick-start tip:Register for a free Shodan account, log into the web UI, and try queries like hostname:example.com or product:Apache. Use filters to narrow down results to specific ports, countries, or device types.
5. VirusTotal
Best for: Checking file, URL, and domain reputation; threat intelligence.
VirusTotal aggregates dozens of antivirus engines, URL scanners, and threat-intelligence data into one unified platform. Users can upload files, submit URLs, or check domains to see whether they have been flagged as malicious or suspicious.
Use cases:
Scanning files or downloads for known malware
Checking whether a URL or domain has a history of malicious behavior
Using passive DNS or historical data for investigations
Integrating VirusTotal into OSINT workflows for reputation checks
Why use it:VirusTotal brings together a wealth of threat intelligence in one place, making it easy to validate whether a file or web resource is unsafe. Its free tier is sufficient for many basic investigative tasks, and the API supports more advanced automated use.
Quick-start tip:Go to the VirusTotal web interface, upload a file or paste a URL, and review scanner results along with community comments. For automation, use the free-tier API (within rate limits) in scripts or recon tools.
6. Wayback Machine (Archive.org)
Best for: Accessing past versions of web pages, deleted content, and historical web data.
The Wayback Machine is a digital archive of the web maintained by the Internet Archive. It captures snapshots of websites over time, making it possible to see what content existed in the past even if it’s been changed or removed.
Use cases:
Recovering deleted or modified web pages
Building a historical timeline of content changes
Finding past contact information, press releases, or data that is no longer publicly accessible
Verifying citations, quotes, or statements from earlier versions of a site
Why use it:It’s a cornerstone tool for investigative work because many people remove or edit content online—but the Wayback Machine preserves many versions for free, enabling timeline reconstruction and historical analysis.
Quick-start tip:Visit the Wayback Machine, paste your target URL, browse by date through available snapshots, and download archived versions or capture screenshots for your research.
7. OSINT Framework
Best for: Navigating a curated directory of OSINT tools, discovering specialized resources.
OSINT Framework is neither a scanner nor a crawler—it’s a rich and well-organized directory of OSINT tools and resources. It categorizes tools by type (people search, domain tools, social media, leak repositories, etc.), helping investigators quickly locate the most relevant ones for their investigation.
Use cases:
Building an investigative toolkit quickly
Finding free or open-source tools tailored to specific OSINT tasks
Planning your investigation by category (e.g., subdomain enumeration, phone-number lookups)
Keeping up to date with newly added OSINT resources
Why use it:Its value lies in organization. Rather than remembering dozens of tools, you can navigate the framework to find exactly what you need, making it ideal for both beginners and seasoned OSINT practitioners.
Quick-start tip:Go to the OSINT Framework site, choose the category relevant to your target (for example, “domain tools” or “social media”), and explore the curated list of free and open resources.
8. ExifTool
Best for: Extracting and analyzing metadata from files, especially images and documents.
ExifTool is a command-line tool used to read, write, and manipulate metadata in files. It supports a wide range of file types and returns detailed information such as GPS location, timestamps, camera model, and other embedded metadata—an essential tool for digital forensics and OSINT investigations.
Use cases:
Extracting GPS coordinates, date, and device information from photos
Analyzing file origins and verifying authenticity
Identifying hidden or unusual metadata in shared documents
Removing or sanitizing metadata before sharing files publicly
Why use it:ExifTool is widely adopted in forensic, investigative, and OSINT workflows because of its versatility, depth of metadata extraction, and its ability to handle many file formats.
Quick-start tip:Install ExifTool, then run commands like exiftool image.jpg to inspect metadata. Use the output to identify locations, timestamps, or device information, and cross-verify with other data sources.
9. Sherlock
Best for: Checking a username across a broad range of social media platforms, alias-based investigations.
Sherlock is a Python-based open-source tool designed to search for a given username on hundreds of social networks and username-hosting services. It simplifies the process of identifying whether a particular alias is in use across multiple platforms, helping investigators map out possible social media footprints.
Use cases:
Discovering pseudo-accounts or alias usage across platforms
Building a social media profile of a person or entity
Verifying identity or consistency of usernames across different sites
Reconnaissance in investigations involving online identities
Why use it:It's fast, covers a large variety of platforms, and is actively maintained by the open-source community. Its flexibility allows for expansion or modification if you want to add custom sites.
Quick-start tip:Clone the Sherlock repository from GitHub, then run python3 sherlock username to scan for that alias across sites. Examine the output, noting which platforms return a result, and validate manually where needed.
10. DNSDumpster
Best for: Domain reconnaissance, subdomain enumeration, network mapping.
DNSDumpster is a simple, free, browser-based DNS reconnaissance tool. It gathers DNS records (such as A, MX, NS, and TXT), discovers subdomains, and builds a visual network map of a domain's infrastructure. It’s a quick and accessible way to understand an organization’s outward-facing network footprint.
Use cases:
Enumerating subdomains of a target domain
Mapping out DNS records for investigative or threat modeling purposes
Visualizing the externally exposed infrastructure of a domain
Identifying control points or potential attack surfaces
Why use it:DNSDumpster’s visual schema and ease of use make it ideal for non-technical or time-sensitive investigations. You don’t need to install anything; just use it in your browser.
Quick-start tip:Visit DNSDumpster, enter the domain of interest, submit your query, and review the results. Use the generated network map to guide further reconnaissance or risk assessment.
Building a Workflow with These Tools
Begin with discovery: Use OSINT Framework to find tools tailored to your investigative goals.
Run automated recon: Launch SpiderFoot on a target domain, email address, or IP block to gather wide-ranging intelligence.
Enumerate infrastructure: Use theHarvester and DNSDumpster to compile subdomains, hosts, and DNS records.
Identify exposed assets: Query Shodan for live devices, open ports, or misconfigured services related to your target.
Reputation & artifact checks: Submit URLs or files to VirusTotal to check for maliciousness or risk.
Uncover relationships: Use Sherlock to search for usernames across platforms, then feed that into Maltego CE to map connections.
Extract forensic metadata: Use ExifTool to dig into file metadata and potentially identify geospatial or device data.
Access historical content: Use the Wayback Machine to retrieve archived versions of web pages, helping you reconstruct timelines or discover previously public content that was later removed.
Best Practices, Legal & Ethical Guidelines
Verify your findings: Always cross-check automated results with reliable sources. Tools may return stale or inaccurate data.
Respect quotas & privacy: Many free OSINT platforms limit usage. Do not abuse APIs, and don’t probe networks in ways that violate terms of service or local laws.
Document everything: Capture when and where you collected data. Use timestamped screenshots, exported reports, and logs so your investigative trail is reproducible.
Follow lawful processes: Stick to publicly available data. Do not hack, scan non-public systems, or access restricted resources without proper authorization. If your investigation has legal or regulatory stakes, consult legal counsel or compliance experts before proceeding.
These ten tools form a well-balanced OSINT toolkit covering reconnaissance, visualization, metadata analysis, infrastructure mapping, and archival research. By combining them in a deliberate workflow, you can conduct effective, lawful, and repeatable investigations. Whether you’re just starting out or building a professional OSINT capability, these free tools will help you gather intelligence, identify risks, and construct meaningful insights—all while staying ethically and legally sound!
Have more questions or need additional help with OSINT? Contact Cybrvault Today!
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Best Free OSINT Tools
Best Free OSINT Tools
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