Automate OSINT Report Writing with ChatGPT | Intel Assistant Agent

Streamline OSINT report writing with ChatGPT’s Intel Assistant Agent. Learn how to create impactful intel briefs. Agent link included.

Insightful Automation. Image created using DALL-E.

Imagine starting your day by simply getting up, grabbing a cup of coffee, and asking your Intel Assistant to generate a personalized intelligence report. Sounds appealing, doesn’t it? Well, let’s explore how we might achieve just that using ChatGPT. The Intel Assistant Agent has been specifically designed as a tool to streamline the creation of intelligence briefings. This article delves into the reasons behind the agent’s development, breaks down the prompts it uses, and demonstrates how it can be used to augment your efforts when creating OSINT intelligence briefings. Stay tuned to the end of the article for a link to download a full report printout and try out the Intel Assistant Agent.

Engage with the Intel Assistant Agent for streamlined and accurate intelligence briefings.

Why Use the OSINT Intel Assistant Agent?

The Intel Assistant Agent was crafted to act as a catalyst, inspiring new ways to streamline the creation of your intelligence briefs. Analysts, who often find themselves wading through vast amounts of information, need tools that can accelerate this process while ensuring both the accuracy and neutrality of the data collected. With its design rooted in mimicking human analytical capabilities, this agent balances depth with conciseness — traits essential for crafting actionable intelligence reports. Currently, the example we’ve presented shows the agent drawing data from general online sources. While this is indeed helpful, it doesn’t fully tap into the agent’s capabilities. Imagine how much more effective it could be if integrated with specific intelligence databases, pulling reports from dedicated intel collection platforms. Such an enhancement would significantly boost the relevance and precision of the intelligence generated.

Figure 1. The image shows a banner for the Intel Assistant, and a tagline that highlights the assistant’s capability to streamline intelligence reporting with accurate and well-structured briefings.

Understanding the Prompt Structure

To deepen our grasp of the Intel Assistant Agent’s functionality, let’s delve into each prompt section’s technical structure and purpose. By exploring these components in detail, we’ll gain a clearer perspective on how each segment contributes to crafting a comprehensive and actionable intelligence briefing. The agent features four distinct prompt sections, each tailored to guide the agent with specific instructions. Let’s examine these one by one, shall we?

Briefing Objectives

First up the Briefing Objectives section. Embedding specific objectives such as accuracy and unbiased reporting is essential in crafting GPT-4 prompts for intelligence briefings. This strategic placement ensures that AI prioritizes these values from the start, effectively shaping the information generation process to be factual and impartial. These directives help maintain data integrity, thus boosting the credibility and reliability of the intelligence reports produced.

Figure 2. The image displays the briefing objectives from the configuration module of ChatGPT 4, outlining the tasks of generating an accurate and unbiased intelligence briefing, including citations, providing context, and updating information.

Including citations within the prompts is also crucial. It prompts the AI to seek and reference verifiable sources for every claim or data piece, ensuring thoroughness and promoting transparency. This allows users to trace the origins of the information, reinforcing trust in the AI-generated intelligence.

Specifying context and impact in the prompts is vital. It steers the AI to weave the information into a broader narrative, highlighting the implications and potential consequences of the intelligence gathered. This approach enables the AI to deliver more comprehensive reports that not only inform but also equip decision-makers for future scenarios.

By integrating these elements into the GPT-4 prompt configuration, analysts ensure the AI tool retrieves data in a structured, reliable, and contextually rich way. This meticulous approach to prompt crafting is key to generating intelligence reports that are both informative and actionable, providing crucial support to analysts and decision-makers in navigating complex information landscapes.

Output Formats

Next up is the Output Formats section. When configuring GPT-4 prompts for intelligence briefings, specifying Output Formats is essential for shaping how the AI presents its findings. Here’s why it matters:

Figure 3. The image displays the configuration options in ChatGPT 4 for exporting intelligence briefings, detailing that reports should be in .docx format, source citations in .xlsx files.

.docx and .xlsx Outputs: Specifying outputs in .docx for narrative reports and .xlsx for data presentations ensures that the reports are practical and usable in professional settings. The .docx format is ideal for detailed narratives, offering readability and structure, while .xlsx files efficiently organize and present large datasets or citations. This tailored output saves professionals time by eliminating copy-and-pasting, allowing them to use data for action immediately.

Excerpt and Key Players Identification: Including a brief excerpt and identifying key players at the outset of the report enables quick absorption of the most critical elements. This setup is particularly vital when time is limited, and stakeholders need to grasp the essence of the briefing swiftly.

Figure 4. The image shows a ChatGPT 4 interface offering options to download an intelligence report on misinformation in the United States and a corresponding spreadsheet of sources, along with a prompt asking if the user wishes to generate another report.

Embedding these details into the GPT-4 prompts guarantees that the AI processes information and delivers it in formats that meet professional standards and are easy to navigate. This strategic prompt design enhances the AI-generated reports’ overall utility, making them ready to print and immediately applicable to analysts and decision-makers.

Report Structure

Next, we must define the Report Structure of the GPT-4 configuration, which is crucial to shaping how the AI formats and presents its findings. Let’s look at a brief explanation of why each element is essential.

Figure 5. The image outlines the structured components of a report in ChatGPT 4, including sections like Name and Date, Executive Summary, Information Obtained, Context, Assessment, and Distribution List, with specific instructions on what each section should contain.

• Name and Date & Time: These details act as metadata, streamlining the cataloging and retrieval process. The date and time stamp also mark the information’s timeliness, which is crucial in rapidly evolving situations.
• Executive Summary: This component provides a concise overview of the report’s contents, allowing decision-makers to grasp the key findings quickly without delving into the full text.
• Information Obtained: Listing each piece of evidence along with its source ensures transparency, which is critical for validating and verifying the data.
• Context: This section enriches the report by framing the data within a broader narrative, illustrating its significance and connection to larger trends or events.
• Assessment: Here, the data undergoes scrutiny to evaluate its reliability and potential implications, thus aiding in shaping future strategies and policy decisions.
• Distribution List: Specifying the recipients ensures that all relevant stakeholders are informed, promoting an organized and timely response.

Figure 6. The image shows a section of an intelligence report generated by ChatGPT 4, including the report’s name, date and time, an executive summary that discusses the spread and impact of misinformation, and detailed analysis of social media trends from sources like Pew Research Center.

Incorporating these detailed elements into the GPT-4 prompt ensures that the AI not only gathers data but presents it in a structured, insightful, and accessible manner, enhancing the report’s utility and effectiveness for users.

Interaction Protocol

Finally, when configuring GPT-4 prompts for intelligence briefings, incorporating a detailed Interaction Protocol is essential to guide the AI in interacting with users. Here’s a breakdown of why each part of this protocol is crucial.

Figure 7. The image displays the detailed Interaction Protocol configuration in ChatGPT 4, outlining the steps from initialization to completion for creating a tailored intelligence report, including options for downloading the report and validating it with additional sources.

• Initialization Queries: These queries are fundamental as they enable the AI to tailor reports based on specific geographic locations, themes, and timeframes. This customization ensures that the intelligence report meets the unique demands of each inquiry, allowing users to dive deep into the specifics that matter most to them.
• Post-Briefing Options: This section introduces flexibility and dynamism into the process by providing various report formats and the choice to validate information with additional sources. These options not only cater to different user preferences but also enhance the accuracy and timeliness of the intelligence by incorporating the latest available data.
• Completion: This final phase is key for maintaining a seamless and ongoing intelligence cycle. It confirms the end of the current briefing and prompts the user to initiate another, supporting continuous monitoring and updating of intelligence. This feature is particularly valuable for analysts engaged in long-term projects or those needing to keep their information updated.

Figure 8. The image displays a conversation in ChatGPT 4 where the user requests the creation of an intelligence report, and the AI asks for specifics such as region, topics of interest, timeframe, and distribution list to tailor the report.

Embedding these elements into the GPT-4 prompt configuration ensures that the AI manages the interaction flow efficiently, providing structured and user-friendly engagements. This setup makes the tool more effective in delivering tailored intelligence and enhances its utility in supporting sophisticated analytical tasks and complex decision-making processes.

Download a full example report from my GitHub repository.

OSINT Revolution: The Impact of the Intel Assistant Agent

The Intel Assistant Agent is another tool that can augment how OSINT analysts process information. Automating the structure of intelligence reports allows analysts to focus more on analyzing data and less on managing it. The bot’s design — focused on clarity, efficiency, and depth — ensures that analysts can precisely construct and disseminate comprehensive, actionable intelligence briefings.

The goal of this article is not merely to introduce the agent but to inspire and instruct OSINT analysts on how to effectively tailor their own prompts to meet specific intelligence needs. Through understanding and utilizing these structured prompts, analysts can enhance their capability to produce high-quality, actionable intelligence that is both timely and accurate.

Bonus: Fine-Tune Your AI-Generated Reports

While the Intel Assistant Agent does a great job structuring reports, you may want to make the writing style feel more human. Here’s a quick tip to adjust your prompts for less robotic results. Include this instruction in the ‘Briefing Objectives’ section of your prompt structure:

Since humans tend to write with more burstiness, with some longer sentences combined with shorter ones. You MUST WRITE your intelligence briefings with human-like perplexity and burstiness.

This tells the AI to vary its sentence structures and complexity, mimicking natural writing patterns.

Access the Intel Assistant Agent featured in this article here (ChatGPT Plus subscription required — OpenAI rules, not mine. Sorry!).

Let’s optimize the Intel Assistant together. Share your favorite prompt structures and tailoring tricks in the comment section or via Twitter using #OSINT #ChatGPT #IntelAssistant

Thanks again for stopping by, catch you next time.

Special thanks to Nico Dekens, the owner of Dutch Osint Guy Intelligence Services, for the inspiration for this article — check out his SANS presentation “Using OSINT and AI to Tackle Disinformation and Analyze Information” to learn more about how to integrate AI into your intelligence analysis process.

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