The Intelligence Gathering Process: How Attackers Research Their Targets

Social media reconnaissance forms the foundation of most spear phishing intelligence gathering, providing attackers with unprecedented access to personal and professional information that targets voluntarily share online. LinkedIn profiles reveal detailed career histories, professional relationships, current projects, and industry expertise that attackers can exploit to craft believable impersonations or scenarios. Facebook, Instagram, and other social platforms provide personal information about family relationships, interests, travel plans, and daily activities that can be leveraged for social engineering attacks.

The sophistication of social media intelligence gathering has evolved to include automated scraping tools that can collect and analyze vast amounts of information across multiple platforms. These tools can identify professional relationships, extract communication patterns, monitor posting schedules to determine optimal attack timing, and even analyze writing styles to help attackers mimic targets' communication patterns. Some operations maintain databases of social media intelligence on potential targets for months or years before launching attacks, waiting for optimal circumstances or gathering additional information that would enhance attack effectiveness.

Professional intelligence gathering targets business relationships, industry activities, and corporate information that can be used to construct believable business scenarios for spear phishing attacks. Attackers research company websites, press releases, SEC filings, and industry publications to understand organizational structures, ongoing projects, recent business developments, and professional relationships that targets might have. They monitor conference attendance, speaking engagements, and professional activities that provide context for impersonation attempts.

Corporate email harvesting and analysis provides attackers with insights into communication patterns, organizational hierarchies, and business processes that enhance spear phishing effectiveness. When attackers compromise corporate email systems, they often spend extensive time analyzing communication patterns before launching their attacks. They study how executives communicate with subordinates, identify frequent business partners or vendors, and understand approval processes for financial transactions or system access. This intelligence allows them to craft communications that perfectly match expected business procedures.

Public records research reveals additional personal and professional information that attackers can exploit in spear phishing campaigns. Property records, court filings, business registrations, and other public documents provide verification for social engineering claims and additional personal details that enhance perceived legitimacy. Some attackers research targets' educational backgrounds, professional certifications, or previous employment to construct more convincing personal connections or shared experiences.

Technical reconnaissance involves gathering information about targets' technology use, security practices, and digital footprints that can inform spear phishing attack strategies. This might include identifying email systems and security software used by target organizations, discovering personal email addresses or social media accounts that might be less protected than corporate systems, or identifying technology conferences or online communities where targets might be more receptive to technology-related phishing attempts.

Timing intelligence focuses on understanding targets' schedules, travel patterns, and periods of increased vulnerability that might make spear phishing attacks more likely to succeed. Attackers might monitor social media for travel announcements, conference attendance, or busy periods when targets might be more likely to quickly process emails without careful analysis. They time attacks to coincide with events that provide natural cover for their scenarios—tax season for IRS impersonation, conference periods for industry-related attacks, or busy business periods when unusual requests might seem more reasonable.