Intelligence before commitment.
We research what is publicly known about individuals, entities and transactions before your client commits — to a deal, a counterparty, a litigation strategy, or a regulatory position. All research is conducted exclusively on open source information, in strict accordance with Hong Kong law.
Eight disciplines. One intelligence practice.
We provide a comprehensive range of open source intelligence services to institutional clients across Hong Kong and globally. Every engagement is conducted on publicly available information, with a documented methodology and a written deliverable.
Adverse Media Screening
Systematic review of global news archives, regulatory announcements, court reporting and online sources for adverse findings relating to individuals, entities or transactions. Reports are structured for compliance file documentation and legal review.
Sanctions & PEP Screening
Screening against OFAC, UN Security Council, EU Consolidated List, HM Treasury, HKMA and other applicable watchlists. Politically Exposed Person identification with relationship mapping. Full audit trail provided for regulatory inspection.
Beneficial Ownership Tracing
Mapping of corporate structures using company registries, stock exchange filings, gazette notices and public records across multiple jurisdictions. We identify ultimate beneficial owners, nominee arrangements and cross-border holding structures.
Asset Tracing
Identification of publicly registered assets — real property, registered vehicles, vessels, aircraft, intellectual property, corporate shareholdings and court-disclosed assets — to inform enforcement strategy, Mareva injunction applications and settlement negotiations.
Counterparty Verification
Independent verification of a counterparty's stated identity, corporate standing, regulatory status, professional credentials and public representations. Particularly relevant in M&A, joint venture, lending and high-value commercial transactions.
Social Media Intelligence
Analysis of publicly accessible social media profiles, posts, connections and digital footprint. Used to verify representations, identify undisclosed relationships, assess reputational risk and support litigation strategy. Conducted entirely on public-facing content.
Dark Web Monitoring
Monitoring of dark web forums, marketplaces and data breach repositories for references to client entities, key personnel, credentials or proprietary information. Findings are documented and reported in a format suitable for incident response and regulatory notification.
Litigation Support Intelligence
Pre-action and in-proceedings intelligence to assist instructing counsel. Includes respondent identification, asset location, witness background research, corporate structure mapping and chronology reconstruction from public records. Delivered in counsel-ready format.
Publicly available. Rigorously documented.
All intelligence produced by this practice is derived exclusively from open source information — information that is publicly available, lawfully accessible and not obtained through covert means, pretext, deception or any form of unlawful access. We do not use closed proprietary databases, conduct surveillance, or engage in any activity that would constitute a criminal offence under Hong Kong law or the laws of any jurisdiction in which we operate.
This is not a limitation — it is a deliberate and principled methodology. Open source intelligence, conducted rigorously, produces findings that are defensible, reproducible and admissible. Every conclusion can be traced to a source. Every source is documented. Every report can withstand scrutiny in legal proceedings, regulatory inquiries and board-level review.
"We do not conduct surveillance, covert entry, pretext calls or any activity that would constitute a criminal offence under Hong Kong law. We remain strictly within the law on every engagement."
Our approach is fully consistent with the Personal Data (Privacy) Ordinance (Cap. 486) and the proportionality principles applicable to the processing of personal data for legitimate purposes. Where an engagement involves personal data, we advise clients on their own PDPO obligations in relation to the use of intelligence findings.
Structured intelligence. Defensible findings.
Our research methodology follows a structured, repeatable process designed to produce findings that are accurate, source-attributed and defensible under legal and regulatory scrutiny.
Intelligence Requirement Definition
We work with instructing counsel or the compliance team to define the precise intelligence requirement — the subject, the purpose, the jurisdictions in scope and the specific questions to be answered. This ensures the research is proportionate, targeted and legally grounded.
Systematic Open Source Collection
Structured collection across company registries, court records, regulatory databases, land registries, sanctions lists, media archives, social media and dark web sources as applicable. All sources are logged with access timestamps and retrieval metadata.
Verification & Cross-Referencing
Raw findings are verified against multiple independent sources before inclusion in the report. Unverified or single-source findings are clearly flagged. Contradictory information is reported with analysis rather than suppressed.
Analytical Assessment
Verified findings are assessed for relevance, significance and implications. We distinguish between factual findings and analytical inferences, and we do not overstate conclusions. Where the evidence is ambiguous, we say so.
Written Intelligence Report
All engagements conclude with a written report in a format appropriate to the purpose — compliance summary, counsel-ready memorandum, board briefing or court-ready intelligence schedule. Source documentation is provided as an appendix.
Digital Forensics Escalation Pathway
Where open source findings indicate that digital evidence may exist on devices or systems, we provide a structured handoff to D3Forensics Limited for forensic-grade collection, preservation and court-ready reporting — maintaining chain of custody from intelligence to evidence.
Intelligence delivered in the format you need.
Every engagement concludes with a written deliverable. The format is agreed at instruction stage and tailored to the purpose — whether for compliance file, legal proceedings, board review or regulatory response.
Institutional clients. Global mandates.
We work with institutional clients across the legal, financial and corporate sectors. All engagements are handled with the discretion and professional rigour appropriate to the sensitivity of the subject matter.
Law Firms
Pre-action intelligence, respondent background research, asset tracing to support enforcement, and litigation support intelligence for instructing solicitors and counsel.
Private Equity & M&A
Counterparty due diligence, management background checks, beneficial ownership verification and adverse media screening for transactions and investments.
Family Offices
Discreet background research on business partners, investment counterparties and key relationships, conducted with the confidentiality appropriate to private wealth mandates.
Compliance Departments
Enhanced due diligence, sanctions and PEP screening, adverse media review and beneficial ownership mapping for AML, KYC and regulatory compliance purposes.
Insurers
Background research on insured parties, claimants and key principals to support underwriting decisions, claims investigation and fraud detection.
Private Clients
Discreet background research on business associates, counterparties and individuals of concern, conducted with strict confidentiality and in full compliance with applicable law.
Sector expertise. Global reach.
Our intelligence practice spans multiple sectors and jurisdictions. We are particularly experienced in the regulatory and corporate environments of Hong Kong, the Asia-Pacific region and common law jurisdictions globally.
Financial Services
Banks, asset managers, brokers, insurers and fintech — regulated entities with AML/KYC obligations.
M&A & Private Equity
Transaction due diligence, management vetting and post-acquisition integrity reviews.
Dispute Resolution
Litigation, arbitration and regulatory proceedings requiring pre-action or in-proceedings intelligence.
Real Estate
Counterparty verification, beneficial ownership and adverse media for high-value property transactions.
Shipping & Trade
Vessel ownership tracing, sanctions screening and counterparty verification for trade finance and maritime matters.
Technology & IP
Background research on technology counterparties, IP ownership tracing and digital footprint analysis.
Healthcare & Life Sciences
Regulatory compliance, licensing verification and counterparty due diligence for healthcare transactions.
Cross-Border & Global
Multi-jurisdictional research across Asia-Pacific, Europe, the Americas and the Middle East.
From instruction to intelligence report.
We operate a structured engagement process designed to deliver accurate, defensible intelligence within agreed timelines. Most standard engagements are completed within five to ten business days.
Initial Enquiry & Scoping
Submit an enquiry via the secure form below or by WhatsApp/Signal. We will confirm the scope, purpose, jurisdiction and timeline within one business day. A brief scoping call is offered for complex mandates.
Engagement Letter & Confidentiality
A brief engagement letter is issued confirming the scope, deliverable format, timeline and fee. All engagements are subject to a mutual confidentiality undertaking. No work commences until the engagement letter is countersigned.
Research & Collection
Systematic open source research is conducted across all relevant sources. All findings are logged with source attribution and retrieval timestamps. Interim findings are shared with instructing counsel where relevant to the strategy.
Verification & Analysis
Findings are cross-referenced and verified. Analytical conclusions are drawn from the verified evidence base. Ambiguous or unverified findings are clearly flagged rather than suppressed or overstated.
Report Drafting & Review
The intelligence report is drafted in the agreed format — compliance summary, counsel memorandum, due diligence report or asset schedule. A draft is provided for factual review before the final version is issued.
Delivery & Escalation
The final report is delivered securely. Where findings indicate that digital evidence may exist on devices or systems, we provide a structured referral to D3Forensics Limited for forensic-grade collection and court-ready reporting.
Principles we do not compromise.
Every engagement is conducted to the same standard of professional rigour, legal compliance and confidentiality — regardless of the size of the matter or the identity of the client.
When intelligence becomes evidence.
D3Forensics Limited — Digital Forensics & eDiscovery
Open source intelligence frequently identifies the existence of relevant digital evidence — on devices, in cloud accounts, across email systems or within corporate networks. Where our OSINT findings indicate that forensic investigation is warranted, we provide a structured handoff to D3Forensics Limited for forensic-grade collection, preservation and analysis. D3Forensics operates to the evidentiary standards required by the Hong Kong courts, HKIAC and international arbitral tribunals, maintaining an unbroken chain of custody from the point of collection to the courtroom. This pathway — from intelligence to evidence — ensures that findings made at the OSINT stage are not lost or compromised when the matter escalates to litigation or regulatory proceedings.
Visit D3Forensics LimitedQuestions from instructing counsel.
Answers to the questions most frequently raised by law firms, compliance teams and corporate clients before instructing us.
Traditional private investigation may involve physical surveillance, pretext calls, covert photography or the use of human sources. Open source intelligence is conducted entirely on publicly available information — company registries, court records, regulatory databases, media archives, social media and similar sources. OSINT produces findings that are fully documented, source-attributed and legally defensible. We do not conduct any form of surveillance, pretext or covert access.
Yes. Research conducted on publicly available information does not, of itself, constitute a breach of the Personal Data (Privacy) Ordinance (Cap. 486) or any other provision of Hong Kong law. The PDPO regulates the collection, use and disclosure of personal data — and where an engagement involves personal data, we advise clients on their own obligations in relation to the use of intelligence findings. All engagements are conducted with proportionality and in accordance with a legitimate purpose.
No. Our research methodology is designed to be entirely passive — we do not contact the subject, access any system that requires authentication, or take any action that would alert the subject to the existence of the enquiry. All research is conducted on publicly accessible sources using standard research techniques that do not generate notifications or alerts to the subject.
Yes, subject to the applicable rules of evidence and the court's discretion. Because our findings are derived from publicly available sources and are fully documented with source attribution, they are generally admissible as evidence of the public record. We structure our reports with legal proceedings in mind, and our analysts are available to provide witness statements or give evidence in support of the findings where required.
Standard engagements are typically completed within five to ten business days, depending on the scope and the number of subjects. Expedited turnaround is available for urgent matters — typically two to three business days for focused engagements — and is confirmed in the engagement letter. We do not compromise the quality or thoroughness of the research to meet an expedited timeline without the client's informed agreement.
Our primary focus is corporate and institutional due diligence. We do conduct research on individuals where there is a legitimate institutional purpose — for example, background research on a director, key principal, beneficial owner or litigation counterparty. We do not accept mandates to research individuals for personal, domestic or non-institutional purposes. All engagements involving personal data are conducted with proportionality and in accordance with PDPO.
We operate globally. Our primary focus is Hong Kong, the Asia-Pacific region and common law jurisdictions including the United Kingdom, Singapore, Australia and the British Virgin Islands. We also cover the United States, European Union member states and other jurisdictions where publicly accessible registries and databases are available. For jurisdictions with limited public record availability, we will advise on the scope of what is achievable before accepting the engagement.
OSINT HK is a practice of D3Forensics Limited, a company registered in Hong Kong. It operates as a distinct intelligence practice, separate from D3Forensics' digital forensics, eDiscovery and expert witness services. Where an OSINT engagement identifies the existence of relevant digital evidence, we provide a structured referral to the D3Forensics digital forensics practice for forensic-grade collection and court-ready reporting — maintaining continuity of the evidentiary chain from intelligence to evidence.
All engagements are subject to a mutual confidentiality undertaking. We do not disclose client identities, subject matter or findings to any third party. Communications are conducted by encrypted messaging (WhatsApp Business or Signal) or by email. Reports are delivered by secure means agreed with the client. We do not maintain publicly accessible case lists or publish case studies that could identify clients or subjects.
Instruct us in confidence.
All enquiries are treated as strictly confidential. We respond within one business day. For urgent matters, please use WhatsApp or Signal.
All enquiries are subject to a mutual confidentiality undertaking. We do not disclose client identities or subject matter to any third party. Subject awareness is never triggered by our research process.