Investigative Walkthrough: Stolen Camera Finder
Uncover the secrets of recovering stolen cameras using online tools and resources.
Why you need this course
Please read this before enrolling.
Stolen cameras are often tied to organized theft, fencing, and resale operations, where high-value equipment is rapidly moved through online marketplaces, pawn shops, and social media platforms to conceal its origin.
These schemes commonly exploit gaps in ownership verification and fast off-platform transactions, making OSINT techniques such as serial number tracking, metadata (EXIF) analysis, reverse image searching, and people searching critical for attribution.
This course follows Tony’s investigative methodology on how to investigate a stolen camera case, demonstrating how multiple OSINT techniques are combined to uncover attribution.
Rather than focusing on isolated skill building, the course walks learners through investigative pivots researching serial numbers, images, profiles, and people to show how a potential suspect can be identified starting with nothing more than a camera serial number.It's not your typical training course, as it does not focus so much on skill building, rather it takes you on an exciting journey through unraveling the world of an online fraudster and connecting their online persona to their real life identity.
❗ Many different tools, techniques, and resources are referenced in this course but are not "taught". Please do not take this course to learn the individual skills. If you are interested in learning the skills required to perform this type of investigation, please complete the suggested prerequisite courses below.
Key learning objectives:
- Understand how small data points, such as a camera serial number, can be transformed into investigative leads
- Pivot from a serial number to photos and online references
- Conduct reverse image searches to identify reuse or resale
- Identify and extract key information from social media profiles
- Leverage data aggregators to expand investigative context
- Layer multiple data sources to build attribution to a subject
At the end of the course, you will know:
By the end of this course, you will know how to take a single data point such as a camera serial number and turn it into actionable investigative leads. You’ll learn how to pivot from a serial number to photos and online references, conduct reverse image searches to identify reuse or resale, and extract key details from social media profiles. The course shows how to expand context using data aggregators, layer multiple sources of information, and apply OSINT techniques to build attribution to a subject.
Recommended Prerequisite Courses:
- Using Search Engines Effectively: https://www.myosint.training/courses/search-engines
- People Searching: https://www.myosint.training/courses/people-searching
- Physical Address and Phone Number Searches: https://www.myosint.training/courses/address-and-phone
- Email Searching: https://www.myosint.training/courses/email
- Username Searching: https://www.myosint.training/courses/username-searching
- Using File Metadata: https://www.myosint.training/courses/file-metadata
- Using OSINT Bookmarklets: https://www.myosint.training/courses/using-bookmarklets
- Reverse Image Searching: https://www.myosint.training/courses/reverse-image-searching
Frequently Asked Questions
-
This course has 30 minutes of instruction.
-
Earn 0.5 CPEs/CEUs for completing this course.
-
Tony Lisek authored and teaches the course.
-
This course consists of online videos accessible from mobile app and/or web browser. Lecture and demonstration.
-
This course is included in the All OSINT Course bundles.
-
A course completion certificate is automatically provided to students finishing this course.