GACS · Free
Free OSINT Certification
A free open-source intelligence course with a real, verifiable completion certificate at the end. Eight lessons, about an hour end to end, built for scam investigators, fraud analysts and anyone who wants to trace who is really behind a website, wallet or social account. No card, no trial, no paywall.
~1 hour · 8 lessons Verifiable certificate Beginner to analyst level
Full study book
Read every chapter online for free. Covers people search, social recon, geolocation, breach data, and reporting standards.
Real certificate
Finish the eight lessons and pass the ten-question final assessment to earn a public, verifiable GACS OSINT Fundamentals certificate with a shareable URL.
Free and ad-free
No subscription, no upsell, no ads on lessons. The academy is funded by donations and the public-safety mission.
What you’ll learn
- Open-source intelligence fundamentals and ethical boundaries
- Social-media reconnaissance across X, Instagram, TikTok, Telegram
- Domain, IP, and wallet-address attribution
- Verifying scam reports and chain-of-evidence basics
- Writing investigator-grade reports and timeline summaries
- Using GACS tools (website checker, wallet checker, social scanner) in practice
The eight lessons, and what each one teaches
This is the whole course, in order. Each lesson is a short read with one takeaway you can use the same day. Work through all eight, pass the ten-question final assessment, and you earn the free completion certificate.
Lesson 1
What OSINT actually is — and what it is not
Public collection plus verification plus a stated confidence level. Drop any of the three and it is just internet searching.
Lesson 2
Law, ethics and the harm you can cause
Write the question down first. If a piece of data does not help answer it, you should not be keeping it.
Lesson 3
Setting up a safe research workspace
One clean browser profile, one folder per case, screenshots taken immediately. Everything else is optional.
Lesson 4
Search like an analyst — operators and pivots
Every finding is a new search term. Work the pivots until they stop producing new material.
Lesson 5
People, usernames and phone numbers
One matching name is a coincidence. Two independent identifiers is a lead. Nothing is a fact until you can show where it came from.
Lesson 6
Companies, domains and money trails
Registration dates, shared addresses and reused identifiers expose networks faster than any single document does.
Lesson 7
Verifying images, video and social accounts
Provenance beats forensics. The strongest question about any image or account is always: where did it first appear?
Lesson 8
Recording evidence and writing the finding
Fact, inference, confidence — in that order, every time. Undated screenshots without a URL are not evidence.
Get new case files and course updates by email
Each week we send the newest verified scam reports as short case files — real investigations you can practise the syllabus on — plus a note whenever a new module or exam version goes live. Free, and you can unsubscribe in one click.
Who this OSINT course is for
Complete beginners
You have never run an investigation and want a structured path instead of a pile of YouTube videos. Start at module one.
Fraud and compliance analysts
You already review alerts and want the attribution and evidence modules so your write-ups hold up under challenge.
Volunteers and scam hunters
You already help people who have been scammed and want to work to a standard, and to file reports others can verify.
Frequently asked questions
Is the OSINT certification really free?
Yes. Every lesson, the study book, the practice questions and the final exam are free to read and free to take. There is no trial, no card required and no paywall. The academy is funded by donations, so the only thing we ever ask for is a contribution if the training helped you.
How long does the free OSINT course take?
The core course is eight lessons and takes about an hour end to end, including the ten-question final assessment. If you also work through the free study book and the wider free certification exams, budget several more hours — but nothing beyond the eight lessons is required to finish and earn the completion certificate.
Do I need experience to start OSINT training?
No. The first lesson assumes zero background and starts with what open-source intelligence is, what is legal to collect, and where beginners get themselves into trouble. Analysts already working in fraud or compliance usually skip straight to the attribution and reporting lessons.
What does the OSINT certificate actually prove?
It shows you completed all eight lessons and passed the ten-question final assessment. Each certificate has a public verification URL an employer can open. It is an independent training completion certificate, not a government licence or an accredited academic qualification.
Is this OSINT certification recognised by employers?
It is recognised the way any independent training certificate is: as evidence you studied the material. It carries most weight when you attach work of your own — a written investigation using the reporting method taught in lesson eight.
What tools does the course use?
Free and public ones only — search operators, WHOIS and DNS lookups, reverse image search, blockchain explorers, and the GACS website checker, wallet checker and social scanner. Nothing in the syllabus requires a paid subscription.
Can I put the certificate on LinkedIn?
Yes. Every certificate has a shareable public URL you can add to the licences and certifications section, and the verification page shows the issue date and the exam version you passed.
Practise on live cases
The fastest way to learn open-source intelligence is to run the workflow on something real. These tools are free and are the same ones used in the lessons.
- Website checker — domain age, hosting and risk signals for any site.
- Social account scanner — check a profile before you deal with it.
- Public scam registry — thousands of verified reports to study.
- Free AML course — the money-laundering companion to this syllabus.
Start in 30 seconds
No signup required to read the material. Create a free account only when you’re ready to take the exam and earn your certificate.
Hiring for a fraud role rather than an intelligence one? The free fraud analyst certification pairs this course with AML training and compares it honestly against a paid credential like the CFE.
Want a credential an employer can check?
The course stays free, forever. If you want proof you can put on a CV, sit the optional certification exam. It is issued as the GACS Certified OSINT Analyst.
- 40 questions, 45 minutes, 80% to pass
- Three attempts included
- Signed, printable certificate
- Permanent public verification page
See the certification — $49One-time payment. No membership, no renewal fee.
Authoritative sources
Independent primary sources used to check and corroborate the guidance on this page.
- FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3)
Official US channel for reporting internet-enabled fraud and cybercrime.
- US Federal Trade Commission — ReportFraud
Consumer fraud reporting and published enforcement data.
- UK Action Fraud
UK national reporting centre for fraud and cybercrime.
- Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre
Canada's central repository for fraud reports and scam alerts.
