ABOUT / PRODUCT & RESEARCH NOTES

About SpiderFoot.tools

An independent, browser-based OSINT service for structured username, email, and IP research. It brings selected public-source checks and their visible states into one workflow; it does not verify identity, ownership, intent, or wrongdoing.

OPEN THE SCANNERS READ THE METHODOLOGY

01 / PURPOSE

Why this exists

Useful public-information research often begins with small, repeatable checks: is a handle present on a public site, does a provider return an account-context signal, or what network context is attached to an IP address? Repeating those checks by hand across separate pages makes it easy to lose the source, the status, or the uncertainty.

SpiderFoot.tools puts a deliberately narrow set of those browser workflows together. The aim is to make collection and review easier, while leaving scope, corroboration, interpretation, and any consequential decision with the researcher.

02 / WORKFLOWS

What the site actually checks

Each workflow exposes a different kind of public signal. A returned card, a missing result, or an error is a system state to investigate—not a conclusion about a person or organisation.

USERNAME

Public-site presence checks

The username workflow uses up to 708 bundled site definitions across 21 configured catalog categories. Language-specific entries can be filtered for the visitor’s browser before a check begins. It also runs 13 high-level API-category checks, such as social, gaming, developer, shopping, and community services.

A matching handle can be shared, reused, stale, or unrelated to the person being researched.

TRY USERNAME RESEARCH

Account-context signals

The email workflow checks 18 configured account categories, including social, music, jobs, shopping, developer, hosting, travel, and community services. The interface distinguishes registered, not-registered, unknown, and error states, and may show indexed public-web context when that feature is available.

It does not prove mailbox control, establish account ownership, send mail, or access an inbox.

TRY EMAIL RESEARCH

Network and routing context

With no IP supplied, the page shows available connection information from Cloudflare-aware request headers. For a validated IPv4 or IPv6 target, the server queries Cloudflare Radar and can return fields such as IP version, ASN, organisation, network, and location context.

Network and location fields can be incomplete or approximate; they do not identify an individual user.

TRY IP RESEARCH

03 / PRODUCT_FACTS

A bounded description of the service

Delivery: Browser-based public research interface; no local SpiderFoot installation is required to use these three workflows.
Username catalogue: Up to 708 bundled site definitions in 21 configured categories, plus 13 API-category checks. Runtime totals can be lower when language-specific definitions are excluded.
Email categories: 18 configured account-context categories. The result state is not an identity or ownership assertion.
Data origins: Bundled public-site definitions, third-party provider responses, optional indexed public-web references, Cloudflare-aware request headers, and Cloudflare Radar for submitted IPs. Each external source controls its own availability and data quality.
Public AI panels: AI Search Results and AI Summary are currently disabled in the public interface. They are not described here as active capabilities.

04 / TESTING

We test the behaviour we expose

The published methodology focuses on feature behaviour rather than certifying a source as complete or an online identity as correct. It covers valid, invalid, empty, edge-case, and duplicate inputs; loading, empty, success, and failure states; source outages, rate limits, changed formats, and unavailable results; plus manual review for obvious mismatches and stale links.

VIEW TESTING METHODOLOGY

05 / PUBLISHED_RESEARCH

Benchmark findings stay inspectable

The blog includes a reproducible public-profile benchmark covering 100 usernames across 20 platforms (2,000 checks) and a field guide documenting 50 common OSINT false-positive patterns. These are research notes with stated limits, not universal accuracy claims.

READ THE 2,000-CHECK BENCHMARK READ THE FALSE-POSITIVE GUIDE

06 / INTERPRETATION_LIMIT

Results are leads, not proof

A public username match does not establish who operates an account. An email response does not establish who controls an address. An IP result does not establish a person’s location. Third-party sources can be stale, rate-limited, unavailable, copied, incomplete, or wrong. Confirm material findings against the original source, dates, context, and independent evidence before acting on them.

READ THE ACCURACY FAQ

07 / AI & CONTEXT

Where AI does—and does not—fit

The codebase contains AI-related implementation, but the public AI Search Results and AI Summary features are disabled at the feature-flag level today. Optional indexed public-web references are a separate result path and may be available only where the site’s country rules allow it.

If an AI-assisted feature is enabled in the future, it should be treated as a suggestion layer: it cannot replace original-source review, establish facts, or support a high-impact decision by itself. The editorial policy sets the same expectation for research writing.

08 / PRIVACY & ERRORS

Minimise exposure; show uncertainty

Supported username and email deep links are moved to session storage and removed from the visible URL before common third-party browser scripts load. This reduces, but cannot erase, exposure in the original request, browser history, infrastructure logs, or a third-party source that must be queried for a result.

The interface is designed to display unavailable and error states instead of turning every failed check into a negative claim. For what is stored, how identifiers are used, and the limits of this protection, read the Privacy Policy.

09 / PROJECT_RELATIONSHIP

An independent site, not the SpiderFoot open-source project

SpiderFoot.tools is an independent third-party web service. It is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or operated by the SpiderFoot open-source project or its maintainers. References to SpiderFoot, public platforms, search engines, or external data sources are descriptive only and do not imply a partnership, sponsorship, or endorsement.

10 / RESEARCH_PUBLICATION

Named bylines and review context

Blog posts expose a named author profile and, where supplied, a reviewer field. Current author profiles include Elena Hartmann and Claire Morgan. The editorial policy explains the intended research, review, correction, and update process.

BROWSE RESEARCH NOTES

11 / CORRECTIONS & FEEDBACK

Report a claim, source, or product issue

To report an inaccurate article, a source issue, or a tool result that needs review, contact [email protected]. Include the affected URL, what appears wrong, the approximate date and time, and public evidence or a safe screenshot when available. Do not send unnecessary personal data.

READ CORRECTION STANDARDS