Publication

This report, prepared for the US Congress, outlines the benefits of open source intelligence (OSINT) collection and management over traditional clandestine methods. It argues that although unclassified information has often been slighted by the intelligence community (IC), a consensus has existed since 2005 that open source information must be systematically collected and in fact constitutes an essential component of analytical products. The authors state that in response to legislative direction, the IC has established the position of Assistant Director of National Intelligence for Open Source at the National Open Source Center. The organization's goal is not only to perform open source acquisition and analysis functions, but also to create a center of excellence in open source collection and analysis that will support and encourage all agencies in the IC in the effective use of open source information.