Mrs. OSINT Challenge 7

Welcome, reader! Today we will be solving Mrs. OSINT’s seventh challenge. I consider this one to be a good starting point for beginners, as I did not encounter any obvious results with reverse image search, yet general location could be found this way. It helps build a strong foundation and serves as a great reminder that simple can be the right approach too. Let’s get into it!

Challenge 7

Where was this photo taken?

1. Submit the GPS coordinates (latitude and longitude) of Mrs. OSINT’s last known location.

Bonus:

Help narrow the net with additional intel:

1. What’s the name of this exact location or park?
2. What clues gave it away?
3. What environmental or visual clues helped you eliminate the wrong location? 
4. Northern or Southern Hemisphere?
5. What tools, tricks, or tactics did you use?
6. What details might be decoys, left by The Phantom Signal?

Looking at the picture gave me tropical vibes, thinking maybe Hawaii, Puerto Rico, Guam, or some other similar place. What captured my attention? Well, this is an intersection at a stoplight; there is a statue with an orange-roofed structure behind it, two stone structures to the side of the entrance, and, of course, the light blue ocean in the background.

If you read my previous post, you already knew I was going to start off with Google Lens.

The highlighted post on the right had a very close match to the orange-roofed gazebo, and that picture was taken in Guam. At this point, I decided to go back to the challenge and see the data provided in the first picture. I had seen some coordinates before but wanted to try out Google Lens first.

This is the location data we were provided:

POSITION DATA (UNVERIFIED):
• Position A: 14.5826° N, 120.9733° E ? Buffer Uplink Cache
• Position B: 13.437[REDACTED], 144.78[REDACTED] ? Frame-Based GeoSignature

I opened Google Earth and searched for position A. It took me to Manila, but the surrounding water wasn’t light blue. I navigated to Guam and saw a section that had matching light blue, so I kept that as a note for myself.

Using only 13.437, 144.78 from position B took me to Guam. It didn’t seem like there was a ton of light blue, so I decided to scroll there until I found orange roofs. Within minutes, I found the right location.

Let’s take a closer look. In the screenshot below, you can see in red the stoplight, the structure in the back, the old fence/handrail, and the two stone structures. If you zoom in, you can see in green the statue, and orange is the rooftop and the gazebo columns.

Where was this photo taken?

1. Submit the GPS coordinates (latitude and longitude) of Mrs. OSINT’s last known location.
   • Solution: 13.47683034,144.75703997

Bonus:

Help narrow the net with additional intel:

1. What’s the name of this exact location or park?
   • Solution: Padre Palmo Park
2. What clues gave it away?
   • Solution: The provided coordinates on Position B confirmed my suspicions.
3. What environmental or visual clues helped you eliminate the wrong location? 
   • Solution: Light blue ocean, orange roof, stone structures at the entrance, statue.
4. Northern or Southern Hemisphere?
   • Solution: Northern
5. What tools, tricks, or tactics did you use?
   • Solution: Google Lens
6. What details might be decoys, left by The Phantom Signal?
   • Solution: Position A

This challenge is proof that sometimes it is better to stick with the simple approach. The OSINT world is filled with advanced and fancy tools that can make it intimidating for some to get started. However, I found that a straightforward method worked exceptionally well in this scenario.

Rather than getting caught up in the complexities that these tools can introduce, I focused on the fundamentals and utilized my basic skills to tackle the challenge head-on. This experience reinforced my belief that the most effective solutions often come from a clear understanding of the problem and employing a simple strategy.

Thank you for taking the time to read! Your support means a lot to me, and I hope you’re as excited as I am for the upcoming challenges. I encourage you to stay tuned for more exercises like this. I would love to hear your thoughts and ideas, so please share them in the comment section below!

Resources

• https://www.mrsosint.com/challenge-7-the-vanishing-frame/
• https://yayimages.com/53147008/guam.html