Sofia Santos’s OSINT Exercise #006

OSINT Exercise #006

Task briefing:
On January 19, 2023, a journalist with almost 140k followers on Twitter shared an image of a destroyed vehicle amidst a large cloud of smoke and fire. The tweet said: “BREAKING: TTPcarried out a suicide attack on a police post in Khyber city of Pakistan that killed three Pakistani police officers“.

The photo is not of the event described by the journalist.
a) Verify the statement above.

I started my investigation with a Google dork to see what information I could get from the original post, thinking a little more context would help me, but I didn’t find much there. The reporter has surpassed 140K followers, if you were wondering.

Then I proceeded to a good old reverse image search. I scrolled down and read a few posts and took note of the dates and locations. I did this with every post that caught my eye until I stumbled upon a Wikipedia post. Yes, I know it’s not the best source, but hear me out.

As you can see in the screenshot below, they used a table to organize the information, making it very easy to read and keep track of.

According to this post, the picture was taken on August 27, 2006, in the Waziriya district of Baghdad, Iraq. I thought the best section from the table was the “source” section. It seemed to have been taken from a Navy website, but to my surprise, the website was no longer accessible.

This is where I kept going in circles trying to find a reputable source that could confirm the information posted on that Wikipedia page. I spent much more time than I would like to admit.

I had to take a break. I remember thinking, “If only I could go back in time to see the original post.” That’s when I remembered about the Wayback Machine. Using this, I was able to copy and paste the source URL from the Wikipedia post and see the original content from the Navy website.

Now that I was able to corroborate the information, I feel more confident in saying that the picture is, in fact, not related to the suicide attack in Khyber City, Pakistan, that killed three police officers.

This picture was taken by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Eli J. Medellin in Waziriyah, Iraq.

Task: The photo is not of the event described by the journalist.
a. Verify the statement above.

Solution:
a. This image is from an event that occurred 17 years earlier on August 27, 2006. A Vehicle-Borne Improvised Explosive Device (VBIED) exploded in the Al Sabah newspaper garage at about 8:30 a.m. In fact, this location is in the Waziriya district of Baghdad, Iraq, more than three thousand kilometers away from Khyber City in Pakistan. The explosion destroyed over 20 cars, killed two people, and wounded thirty others.

Being able to complete this challenge was very rewarding to me, as it not only tested my skills but also pushed me beyond my limits. I truly hit a brick wall during this investigation, feeling overwhelmed and frustrated.

However, I was able to climb that wall on my own, relying on my determination and resourcefulness to find alternative solutions and perspectives. This experience not only taught me the value of perseverance but also reinforced the importance of believing in myself, even when the odds seemed stacked against me.