Also called: OSINT Analyst
Finds intelligence in public information like social media, satellite photos, flight trackers, and news.
OSINT analysts geolocate videos posted online, track ships with public data, and verify claims during wars. Some work for government, others for news outlets or companies. Online sleuthing skills matter more than secret access.
Approximate: anchored on Bureau of Labor Statistics data for a broader job group.
Bachelor's degree (4-year), about 4 years after high school. Bachelor's degree; self-taught investigation skills very valuable.
Ways in: 4-year college, Self-taught. Training cost: Under $15k.
Majors to look at: International Relations, Journalism, Geography, Computer Science.
Growing faster than average. Approximate; growing field.
High risk for 10 years. AI tools now scrape, translate and geolocate public content fast; fewer analysts needed for routine collection.
Classes: AP Human Geography, A foreign language, Computer science.
Official data: O*NET occupation 19-3099.
Career Universe is an early version. Pay, training and AI-risk figures are estimates to start your own research, not verified facts. The research was written with AI research assistants, checked by validation scripts and spot-checked by hand. Check anything important with schools, employers and official sources. How the numbers work.