Collaborative or single-handed ploys of criminals targeting Financial Institutions (FIs) is no longer an at-gun-point scenario, with most banks and insurance companies hosting a wide range of services and transactions online. Breaches of FIs online systems have supported the illicit activities of terrorists with various cases of money laundering, terror funding and theft stealthily executed online by key players based all over the world map. Analysts' need for technologies and solutions with Artificial Intelligence at their core have become critical to solving, predicting and preventing crime against FIs, with the machine and deep learning algorithms delivering the turnkey data that's analyzed from Open Source Intelligence (OSINT) and Cyber Related Information (CRI).

What is OSINT? What Are OSINT & CRI Analysis Tools? Why They Are Vital to FIs?

Open Source Intelligence is data gathered and analyzed by intelligence agencies from open sources of information on the web's surface layer, including websites, forums, blogs, and publicly accessible social media data. FIs' analysts investigating fraud, theft, money laundering and suspected terror funding benefit from AI-driven solutions that sift through the web's vast open source data to collect critical insights, preventing threats and solving crime.

The use of analyzed OSINT data from blogs, forums and online communication channels can help analysts derive the sensitive, critical data that connects networks of accomplices involved in large-scale crime. Partnered with Cyber Related information, like IP addresses, domains, website hosts, timestamps, indicators of compromise (IOCs) and geo-locations of key players and actors, analysts can connect the dots of hidden relationships in criminal networks that can spread across regions, countries, and continents.

How Do AI-Driven Solutions Prevent Fraud & Crime Targeted at Financial Institutions?

For lack of a better expression, the OSINT and CRI data generated is beyond enormous and continues to grow, so AI-infused web intelligence analysis tools will optimize the investigations of FIs by pinpointing essential details of times, places and people that play integral roles in fraud, money laundering or terror funding. How?

The Collection of Relevant & Holistic Data Combined with Bypassing Human Error

Social media accounts often present information regarding suspects that FIs' customer record or even criminal background records lack, such as suspects' assets, property, alternate and unexpected sources of income and identities.

With IP addresses, URLs of domains, phone numbers, user data, geo-location insights, names, pseudonyms, and CRI trends combined with insights derived from online content and communication, analysts develop a holistic vision of a case, identify roles of actors and accomplices with leveraged accuracy. A variety of end points are brought together as the software meticulously scans the web for critical criminal network connections and interactions that can reveal relationships. From social media analysis (SMA), to technical online usage data, AI pieces the puzzle together for a new vision of the investigation.

Domain & Geo-Location Analysis Alongside Anonymous Browsing – How & Why?

Machine and deep learning algorithms scour both OSINT and CRI data to analyze website domains, hosting locations, owners of websites, how they're funded, maintained and supported to dissect the intricate connections within a collaborative ploy and network. With geo-location analysis, critical transactional data from various accounts, exchange of funds and understanding their pathway to the final destination and player can be understood.

Elimination of injustice, distribution of Financial Institutions' and their respected clientele's sensitive data can be prevented, while violent crime, terror and fraud can be predicted or even hindered from being realized.

About Cobwebs

Cobwebs' automated web investigation platforms empower analysts and investigators with automatically generated target profiles, transforming single leads into developed, end-to-end investigations. With our solutions identify target groups, extract locations, get automated insights and real-time alerts.

Our platforms provide in-depth and accurate investigation solutions for face recognition, network monitoring, social media and predictive analysis. Any forensic investigation can now be seamless, smooth and enforce public safety, social order, and optimize the efficiency of operation with our powerful AI-driven OSINT (Open Source Intelligence) solution.

The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.