Relevant today as I unpick some unit tests I let AI write and turn out to be very plausible-looking at first and second glance, but turned out to test nothing of value when properly examined.

Using LLMs to shortcut critical thinking is sometimes a cheat code and sometimes a stupid idea, it depends.

Now that we have thinking models and methodology to train them, surely before long it will be possible to have a model that is very good at the kind of thinking that an expert OSINT analyst knows how to do.

There are so many low hanging fruit applications of existing LLM strengths that have simply not been added to the training yet, but will be at some point.

"OSINT" has had a rather quick collapse in that area for quite some time, many participants under that label are basically propaganda outlets for whatever state or other.

Maybe the article addresses that, I'm not permitted to read it, likely because I'm using IPv6.

Forensic Architecture is a decent counterexample, however. They've been using machine learning and computer synthesis techniques for years without dropping in quality.

Why OSINT? That goes for any domain.

Besides "OSINT" has been busy posting scareware for years, even before "AI".

There's so much spam that you can't figure out what the real security issues are. Every other "security article" is about "an attacker" that "could" obtain access if you were sitting at your keyboard and they were holding a gun to your head.

The trouble with OSINT is that they often take the opinions of "good" government officials and journalists at face value.

This sort of lazy thinking doesn't miss a beat when it comes to take the opinions of an LLM at face value.

Why not? It sounds mostly the same. The motivations to believe AI, is exactly the same as the motivation to believe government officials and journalists.

> Don’t let the machine do the thinking for you.

It seems ironic that the author's use of AI in writing this article turned what began as a really thoughtful analysis of a study into an AI listicle devoid of any human experience.

I question the notion that such tools are necessary or admissible in my daily life.

Mere observation of others has shown me the decadence that results from even allowing such "tools" into my life at all.

(who or what is the tool being used?)

I have seen zero positive effects from the cynical application of such tools in any aspect of life. The narrative that we "all use them" is false.

> Not because analysts are getting lazy, but because AI is making the job feel easier than it actually is.

But all the examples feel like people are being really lazy, e.g.

> Paste the image into the AI tool, read the suggested location, and move on.

> Ask Gemini, “Who runs this domain?” and accept the top-line answer.

Who uses genAI for OSINT? Like, wth?

I don't even know what I would ask an LLM about when doing OSINT. It's not like an LLM is going to 'know' who owns an AWS server, or what's running on it, or something.

Tried one exercise from the article, to ask gemini to identify owner of domain (my domain). Gemini was very confident and very wrong.

I bet any OSINT person would have had my name and contact in half an hour.