In the business world today there is a large demand for information. Data is constantly analyzed for potential risks and rewards, and companies want to have it as fast as possible. The businesses that utilize open source intelligence, or OSINT, thrive by monitoring future trends and staying ahead of the ever changing curve. In short, business intelligence is the methods by which a company translates raw data into information. With the innovation of technology this data is primarily collected digitally and translated digitally. Then analysts, developers, and managers interpret the data for their business needs. The key is to gather mountains of raw data and turn it into something useful. This can help a business become more efficient, predict the market, make informed decisions, and dissect competitors’ strategies and decision making processes. It is an overall necessity for any business owner today.
OSINT is crucial for businesses not only for their analytical benefits but for their open source code. Open source programs are available for anyone to purchase and customize. Many companies build their own versions of data analytic software but this takes time and money. The most cost-efficient route is to use open source business intelligence programs and customize it to fit your business needs. It is important to find the best program because good intelligence is crucial to make key decisions for your business. There is a massive amount of data, which needs to be organized, from social media to news outlets to marketing trends, there is a plethora of information moving lighting fast in the world. You need a way to filter out what information is important for your business. The most important part of the program is the usability for your business.
There are some challenges which come with business intelligence gathering and analyzing. You should know in advance your businesses’ needs and what you want before you can fully utilize the data. If you are concerned about fraud, for example, you can use data to show where counterfeit items are sold. Or, you are interested in tracking risk events and responding to these risks. With business data you have access to infinite amounts of data, therefore you will have to decide which parts you need to analyze before manually reviewing information. It is then your team’s job to decipher the data and decide what is best for the business. There are no programs which will do this part for you, by harvesting databases there will still need to be manual interpretation and analyzing. There are incredible solutions out there that will help your business grow and keep up with current trends.
