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The world today moves faster than at any other time in human history. Not long ago, news from distant parts of the planet could take days or even weeks to arrive. Today, events unfolding thousands of kilometers away can reach us within seconds. A plane takes off, a ship changes course, a satellite passes overhead, or an earthquake strikes somewhere on the globe, and within moments the information begins circulating.
Modern technologies have dramatically shortened both travel time and information flow. At the same time, an enormous amount of data has become publicly accessible. Governments, scientific organizations, aviation services, maritime tracking networks, and news agencies constantly publish streams of information that anyone can analyze. Over the past decade, a large number of OSINT platforms have appeared that collect and organize these public data streams. The challenge is rarely the lack of information. There is simply too much data spread across too many platforms. Analysts frequently find themselves switching between multiple websites and applications just to assemble a complete picture of what is happening in the world.
In today’s article we will explore a tool that attempts to solve exactly that problem. It gathers numerous open intelligence feeds and presents them in a single interface that resembles something straight out of an intelligence agency command center. The tool is called ShadowBroker.
What is ShadowBroker
ShadowBroker is a real-time, multi-domain OSINT dashboard designed to aggregate a wide variety of public intelligence feeds into a single map interface. The system continuously collects and visualizes live information coming from multiple open sources. These include aircraft tracking networks, maritime navigation systems, satellite orbit data, earthquake monitoring services, conflict reporting feeds, GPS interference monitoring, and even CCTV network mapping. All of this information is displayed on an interactive world map that updates in real time.
Technically, the platform is built using modern web technologies such as Next.js for the frontend interface and MapLibre GL for rendering the interactive mapping layer. The backend services are powered by FastAPI and Python, which handle the data aggregation and processing tasks. This architecture allows the platform to ingest multiple live feeds and display them in near real time.
Setting Up the Environment
Before interacting with the dashboard itself, we first need to install the necessary components that allow the platform to run properly. Although the tool supports multiple operating systems, including Windows and macOS, we will focus on deploying it on Kali Linux.
ShadowBroker runs using containerized services, which means Docker and Docker Compose must be installed on the system.
The following commands prepare the system environment.
kali > sudo apt update
kali > sudo apt install docker.io
kali > sudo systemctl start docker
kali > sudo systemctl enable docker
kali > sudo apt install docker-compose
kali > sudo usermod -aG docker $USER
kali > newgrp docker
Once these packages are installed and the Docker service is running, the system is ready to deploy the dashboard.
kali > git clone https://github.com/BigBodyCobain/Shadowbroker.git
kali > cd Shadowbroker
kali > ./compose.sh up -dThis command sequence downloads the project repository and launches the containerized services required for the dashboard. The installation process typically takes only a few minutes, although the exact time may vary. After the services start successfully, the system will automatically keep them running in the background.
Exploring the Dashboard Interface
Once the installation is complete, the dashboard becomes available through a web browser at the address: http://127.0.0.1:3000
When accessing the platform for the first time, you may notice a suggestion to add free API keys from services such as OpenSky Network and AIS Stream. These platforms provide aviation and maritime tracking data. The integration is optional, and sometimes the feeds may not display correctly even after adding the keys. Because the project is still under active development, improvements are regularly being introduced.
After the initial setup, the interface loads into an interactive world map.
On the left side of the screen you will see a panel containing numerous layers of information that can be enabled or disabled. These layers include military flights, private jets, commercial aircraft, maritime vessels, satellite tracking, seismic activity, and other global monitoring feeds. The list continues to expand as new data sources are integrated into the project.
News alerts appear on the lower right side of the interface, categorized by their level of importance. When major geopolitical developments occur, these alerts appear directly on the map, allowing the user to quickly navigate to the region where events are unfolding.
The right side of the interface also includes a display of global markets, with particular attention to sectors such as defense and energy, due to the ongoing conflict in Iran.
A legend is included in the interface to help interpret the various symbols and icons displayed across the map. With the basic layout understood, we can begin exploring some of the more interesting capabilities of the dashboard.
Sigint Intercept
One interesting feature involves monitoring publicly available radio communications. Many emergency response services and public safety organizations operate radio channels that can be monitored. ShadowBroker integrates access to some of these public streams, allowing users to listen to emergency communications in different regions.
News On The Ground
Another useful component of the dashboard is its ability to cluster news events geographically. When significant events occur in a particular region, the platform aggregates related news articles and displays them as interactive clusters on the map.
By opening these clusters, you can quickly access headlines and links that lead to the original reporting sources.
For example, when observing the Middle East, you might open a cluster over Qatar and see a collection of recent headlines connected to events occurring in that region.
Satellite Monitoring
Satellites orbiting the Earth serve a wide variety of purposes. Some are dedicated to weather forecasting, others provide communication services, and some perform reconnaissance tasks for military or scientific missions. By enabling the satellite layer within the dashboard, you can observe these objects moving across the globe.
In the example displayed on the map, a Chinese military recon satellite is flying above occupied regions of Ukraine.
GPS Jamming Detection
Another intriguing layer available in the dashboard displays areas where GPS signals are experiencing interference. GPS jamming can occur for several reasons, including military exercises, electronic warfare operations, or experimental testing.
As the ShadowBroker platform continues to evolve, we hope it will refine the accuracy and detail of these jamming indicators.
Aircraft and Helicopter Tracking
Aviation tracking is one of the most visually engaging features of the platform. The dashboard can display several categories of aircraft simultaneously, including military planes, tracked VIP aircraft, and commercial flights.
Some aircraft are tagged with additional information that identifies their owner or operator. This sometimes includes aircraft belonging to governments or well-known political figures. The search bar on the right side of the interface allows users to look up specific individuals or aircraft identifiers. For instance, searching for the President of the United States will reveal the location of his aircraft.
In the example shown, the aircraft associated with Donald Trump was traveling from Florida on that particular day.
MODIS Terra Satellite Imagery
The dashboard also integrates imagery from Earth observation satellites such as MODIS Terra. These satellites capture high-resolution images of the planet on a daily basis, providing valuable data for environmental monitoring and weather observation.
By enabling this layer, users can view recent satellite imagery covering large portions of the Earth’s surface.
Hoovering over Turkey reveals snow-covered mountain peaks visible in early March.
Summary
Modern OSINT analysis is about connecting many small pieces of publicly available information. New sensors and public information services are constantly expanding the amount of data available for analysis. Tools like ShadowBroker demonstrate how powerful this approach can be when multiple data sources are brought together in a single interface.
If you want to improve your OSINT skills, consider our OSINT training. Those who need assistance in uncovering the truth, don’t hesitate to reach out to us at [email protected]. We will conduct a comprehensive OSINT investigation for you.
Source: HackersArise
Source Link: https://hackers-arise.com/open-source-intelligence-osint-tracking-world-events-with-shadowbroker/