Neil Smith

In 2003, Neil joined a UK based training company as their lead OSINT trainer. He ran training courses around the globe, mostly to those in law enforcement. Neil later left and formed his own company. He continued to undertake online research for a mixture of clients. Neil developed and supplied OSINT Internet Investigations courses, titled Using The Internet As An Investigative Tool. These courses were mostly to those involved in law enforcement as well as those involved in corporate, commercial investigations and insurance claims handling.

In 2019, Neil helped form what became Locate International, a UK Registered Charity. It empowers volunteers to use OSINT techniques. These are to assist police and families in helping to investigate missing people and help identify unidentified body cases.

Neil served for over 10 years as a police officer in a UK police force. He then spent time working as a counter-fraud specialist for a government department and as a fraud investigator for insurance companies. For nearly all of the last 20 years, Neil has been a full time investigative researcher. He uses only Open Source Intelligence techniques on enquiries for a mixture of clients, from insurance companies to law enforcement agencies and journalists.

Neil has travelled the world teaching many hundreds, if not thousands of investigators. These have been from law enforcement, local authorities, insurance companies, as well as private investigators and journalists, on the art of using the Internet as an Investigative Tool.

Neil is an accredited CPD trainer and is a guest lecturer at a number of UK Universities, teaching Open Source Intelligence. Neil also runs a website full of useful OSINT links and techniques.

Fraud Investigator (1997 – 2003)
After leaving the Police due to an injury on duty, Neil worked as a self-employed insurance fraud Investigator. He worked for a number of large companies, mostly in relation to personal injury claims. This required Neil to gather evidence of fraudulent activity by means of surveillance and enquiries. It was during this time that Neil was introduced to OSINT.

During 2002 and 2003, Neil was employed as an Accredited Local Counter Fraud Specialist within the NHS. He worked in the Bristol area, covering many of the 7 NHS Trusts. He would investigate any suspected fraud in relation to NHS funds, collecting and analysing the evidence, interviewing witnesses and suspects in accordance with all appropriate legislation, as well as giving Fraud Awareness Presentations to all levels of staff.

UK Police Officer (1983 – 1996)
Neil joined the Avon and Somerset Constabulary in September 1983. He was pensioned out early in December 1996 after receiving a number of injuries on duty. During his time as a Police Officer, Neil carried out the normal duties of a uniformed patrol/response officer. He also spent time as a
a) Task Force Officer: dealt with incidents of public disorder, conducted crime scene searches and security searches for Royal and V.I.P visits.
b) Authorised Firearms Officer, attached to the on call firearms unit.
c) Video & Audio Evidence Gatherer, recording evidence during planned operations and public order incidents.
d) Plain Clothes Officer Investigator, attached to district units, including a Street Offences Squad, a Burglary Squad, a Vehicle Crime Unit, and time spent on the Force Drug Squad.

During these times, Neil would regularly receive raw intelligence and as a result formulate an operation to carry out proactive covert and overt operations. He would also partake in mobile and static surveillance, dealing with informants and conducted prison visits.