Criminal Law Report: Analysis of OSINT and Intelligence Community

This report delves into the realm of criminal law, focusing on Open Source Intelligence (OSINT), its advantages and disadvantages, and its relationship with other intelligence sources. It examines the role of the intelligence community, including agencies like the CIA and FBI, in gathering and reporting data related to national security. The report further explores the nexus between public safety disciplines, such as law enforcement and infrastructure protection, and homeland security. It highlights the importance of the Office of Intelligence and Analysis in coordinating information within the intelligence community and the Department of Homeland Security. Additionally, the report discusses the emerging multidisciplinary approach to address the threat of terrorism and the need for expanding intelligence capabilities through higher education and specialized degrees in related fields. This assignment provides a comprehensive overview of the critical components of criminal law and intelligence, offering insights into their interconnectedness and significance.

Running head: CRIMINAL LAW
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Name of Student
Name of University
Author’s Note

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Part 1
Pros and Cons of OSINT
Open Source Intelligence can be described as the data that is collected by way of sourced
that are available to the public through the use of internet. The use of OSINT can be
advantageous as well as disadvantageous (Hribar, Podbregar & Ivanuša, 2014). The advantage of
OSINT is that internet is free for all and can be accessible by anyone for all the information that
is readily available. The disadvantages lie in the fact that the information gathered from an open
source can be misused by someone with an intention to harm or malign.
How OSINT relates to other sources of intelligence
The collection of intelligence is done in five different ways namely, OSINT, HUMINT,
SIGINT, IMINT, MASINT and OSINT (Stottlemyre, 2015). The other four intelligences except
OSINT can be seen to be the responsibility of single agencies. However OSINT can be seen to
be collected by all of U.S. Intelligence Community.
Part 2
Intelligence Community
The term intelligence community can be described as all the government and public
agencies as well as the private agencies that are seen to be gathering, assembling and reporting
data in relation to national security or even the security of the world. In USA the Central
Intelligence Agency (CIA), the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the National Security

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Agency (NSA), the Department of Treasury and the departments present within different
branches of the military.
Homeland Security and Public Safety Disciplines
A widely accepted fact is that certain public safety disciplines have nexus towards the
homeland security. Individuals who are seen to be practicing in the public safety disciplines
might engage with other agencies in certain manner that it can be termed as homeland security.
Two disciplines of homeland security and public safety are law enforcement and infrastructure
protection (Pelfrey & Kelley, 2013). The main objective of the law enforcement is the
prevention of the terrorist attacks happening within the U.S., reducing the vulnerability towards
terrorism and minimizing damages. Since inception the DHS has been a member of the
Intelligence Community of U.S. The Office of Intelligence and Analysis, another member of the
IC, can be seen to be ensuring that information and intelligence is coordinated for providing a
connection between the IC as a whole and the DHS.
Emerging IC relating to multidisciplinary approach
Multidisciplinary research can be recognized as an effective means for addressing of
questions requiring different disciplines for providing solutions. The threat of terrorism can be
seen to be majorly shaping many domestic and international security policies. Consideration of
creating new domestic counter-terrorism intelligence is done by U.S. For the consideration of
domestic intelligence various individual organizations have responsibilities and roles in relation
to touching on CT (Lowenthal, 2016).

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Needs for expanding intelligence
Intelligence can be defined as an exact science on the basis of methods of sound
quantitative and qualitative research (Prunckun, 2014). With the expansion of the field of
intelligence there is a need in the intelligence community for higher education. There has been
great expansion and transformation in the IC for addressing of the shortfalls by way of
developing specialized degrees in intelligence, national defence and homeland security in the
main stream academia.

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Reference
Hribar, G., Podbregar, I., & Ivanuša, T. (2014). OSINT: a “grey zone”?. International Journal of
Intelligence and CounterIntelligence, 27(3), 529-549.
Lowenthal, M. M. (2016). Intelligence: From secrets to policy. CQ press.
Pelfrey, W., & Kelley, W. (2013). Homeland security education: A way forward. Homeland
Security Affairs, 9(1), 1-13.
Prunckun, H. (2014). Scientific methods of inquiry for intelligence analysis. Rowman &
Littlefield.
Stottlemyre, S. A. (2015). HUMINT, OSINT, or something new? Defining crowdsourced
intelligence. International Journal of Intelligence and CounterIntelligence, 28(3), 578-
589.