Frequently Asked Questions
What We Do
Social media discovery is the professional collection, review, and preservation of publicly available information from social media platforms and the open web, conducted in a manner that meets the evidentiary standards required in legal, insurance, and corporate matters.
A basic internet search finds surface level information biased toward your previous search history. Social media discovery finds information beyond the surface level and produces a defensible record of it, one that can withstand scrutiny from opposing counsel, satisfy authentication requirements under Federal Rule of Evidence 901(b), and support its use as evidence in legal proceedings.
The difference in practice is significant. Ad hoc searches, screenshots, and automated tools can surface information, but they rarely capture the underlying data required to defend how and when it was collected, or to confirm that what was found actually belongs to the subject. Findings that cannot be authenticated are findings that cannot be relied upon.
SMI Aware approaches discovery differently. Our certified analysts search nearly 600 social media and online platforms, apply a defined methodology to confirm that results are attributable to the subject, and document every finding with embedded source code that preserves the digital chain of custody. The result is information your team can use with confidence, not hesitation.
Open-Source Intelligence, commonly referred to as OSINT, is the practice of legally collecting and analyzing information from publicly available online sources, including social media platforms, public records, news, and other web-based content, to answer specific questions or support informed decision-making.
The term “open-source” refers to the public availability of the information, not the method used to find it. OSINT does not involve accessing private accounts, bypassing security settings, or interacting with subjects in any way. Everything collected is drawn from what is already visible to the public.
For legal, insurance, and corporate teams, OSINT is most valuable when it is conducted with discipline. Publicly available information is only as useful as the process used to find, verify, and preserve it. Without a defined methodology, consistent authentication standards, and proper documentation, information gathered from public sources can be challenged, excluded, or misattributed.
A Deep Report is SMI Aware’s core discovery product. It is a professionally reviewed report designed to support legal workflows and document a subject’s social media presence and relevant online activity across nearly 600 platforms.
Each Deep Report is conducted by a full-time, US-based analyst using purpose-built technology and a standardized methodology. Our analysts begin with the subject and expand the search to secondary and tertiary connections, including relatives, friends, coworkers, and other associates, to build a complete picture of the subject’s online presence. Results are confirmed with at least three instances of personal identifiers before being included in the report, ensuring that what is delivered is attributable to the correct individual.
The report includes landing pages to confirmed social media profiles and a sampling of scope-related findings based on the parameters you provide. Every applicable result is embedded with source code to support authentication and evidentiary procedures. Reports are delivered within two business days and are available in PDF, CSV, and JSON formats for integration into your preferred e-discovery platform or case management system.
A Deep Report includes landing pages to confirmed social media profiles and a sampling of scope-related findings drawn from the parameters you provide at the time of your request.
When a scope requests a general social media search, our analysts provide landing pages for both confirmed and unconfirmed profiles across the platforms searched. When a scope identifies specific content of interest, such as references to a particular incident, evidence of physical activity, or posts involving specific individuals, our analysts will capture a targeted sampling of relevant findings. Where scope-related content appears repeatedly across a platform, up to five instances will be included in the report.
Every result is embedded with source code and documented with clear sourcing and methodology. Reports are delivered in PDF, CSV, and JSON formats and are structured for direct integration into e-discovery platforms and legal workflows.
If your matter requires a more exhaustive set of results or a more inclusive sampling than the standard Deep Report provides, our team can develop a customized research project tailored to your specific needs. Contact our customer support team at support@smiaware.com or call 888-299-9921 to discuss your requirements.
A standard Deep Report is designed to deliver a thorough and targeted overview of a subject’s public social media presence and scope-related findings. There are, however, some content types and output formats that fall outside its scope.
A Deep Report does not include:
- Video downloads from social media profiles
- More than five instances of any single repeated scope-related finding
- A full preservation capture of an individual profile or target URL (see: What is an Export?)
These limitations are by design. The Deep Report is built to deliver a defensible, organized sampling of relevant findings, not an exhaustive archive. Where your matter requires video downloads, full profile preservation, or a broader set of results than the standard sampling provides, SMI Aware offers additional products and custom research options to meet those needs.
If you are uncertain whether a Deep Report covers your specific requirements, our customer support team is available to help you identify the right solution before you place your order. Contact us at support@smiaware.com or call 888-299-9921.
An Export is a visual capture of content from a single social media profile or target URL and delivered in a PDF format. It is the appropriate product when a specific profile or page has already been identified and contains content that is directly relevant to your matter.
Unlike the Deep Report, which surveys a subject’s broader online presence across platforms, the Export is focused and singular. It captures information on a specific known URL at the time of collection, including posts, images, and associated metadata, and preserves it in a format designed for legal review and evidentiary use.
Each Export is produced with source code in HTML format, hashed to maintain the digital chain of custody. This distinction matters in legal proceedings. Unlike a screenshot, an Export captures the underlying source code of the page, which helps establish what was publicly available at the time of collection and supports the chain of custody documentation required for evidentiary use.
Exports can be ordered as a standalone product or as part of a Research Bundle. They are particularly valuable when there is reason to believe a subject may change privacy settings or delete content as a matter progresses.
A Research Bundle combines a Deep Report with up to three Exports into a single order. It is designed for matters where broad discovery and targeted preservation are both needed from the outset.
When you place a Research Bundle order, our analysts conduct the full Deep Report search across nearly 600 platforms and identify the top three platform results most relevant to your scope. Those results are automatically preserved as Exports, capturing the content as it exists at the time of discovery. Additional Exports can be added to your order for an additional fee.
The Research Bundle is the option most commonly recommended for new matters, because it secures both the overview and the preservation in a single, coordinated effort. Content that exists today may not exist tomorrow. Ordering the bundle at the start of a matter reduces the risk of losing relevant material before it can be formally preserved.
In the rare instance that our analysts do not locate results appropriate for Export, that portion of your order will be refunded.
The Research Bundle is the most complete starting point for social media discovery because it combines broad search coverage with immediate preservation of the most relevant findings, in a single coordinated order.
In active litigation and investigations, timing matters. A subject may become aware that their online activity is under scrutiny and change privacy settings, delete posts, or deactivate accounts entirely. Content that is publicly available today may be gone before a formal discovery request can be made. The Research Bundle addresses this risk directly by preserving key findings at the moment they are found, before anything changes.
If you are evaluating whether a Research Bundle is appropriate for your specific matter, our customer support team is available to help. Contact us at support@smiaware.com or call 888-299-9921.
A Custom Report is appropriate when the standard Deep Report does not fully address the scope or complexity of your matter. It is built to specification, designed around research needs that go beyond what the standard product is structured to deliver.
Common use cases for a Custom Report include:
- Matters requiring results that tag a person or company across specific social media channels
- Matters requiring results that reference a specific topic, event, product, or keyword across specific platforms
- Matters requiring a more exhaustive sampling of scope-related findings than the standard five-instance limit
- Matters requiring expanded comments, metadata charts, or other reporting elements not included in the standard Deep Report
- Matters requiring video downloads from a subject’s profile
If you are uncertain whether your matter falls within the scope of a standard Deep Report or requires a custom solution, we recommend contacting our team before placing your order. Our analysts can help you define the right scope and identify the most appropriate product for your specific research needs. Contact us at support@smiaware.com or call 888-299-9921.
How It Works
A standard search engine is designed to return popular, indexed results based on your search history, location, and algorithmic relevance. It is optimized for convenience, not comprehensiveness. A significant portion of publicly available social media content sits outside what a basic search will surface, buried in platform-specific indexes, associated with usernames rather than legal names, or connected to a subject only through secondary relationships.
SMI Aware’s analysts approach a subject’s online presence differently. Rather than entering a name into a search bar, our analysts work with purpose-built technology using a defined methodology that spans nearly 600 social media and online platforms, beginning with confirmed identifiers and expanding outward through a subject’s known network of relatives, friends, coworkers, and associates. This layered approach surfaces content that would not appear in a standard search because it was never indexed by a general search engine in the first place.
Our analysts also apply techniques specifically developed for open-source intelligence work, including cross-platform correlation, alias identification, and reverse identification methods that connect a subject’s known profiles to accounts that do not use their legal name. Every result is reviewed for relevance and verified as attributable to the correct individual before it is included in a report.
The result is a more complete picture of a subject’s public online presence than any general search could produce, documented in a format that meets legal evidentiary standards.
SMI Aware’s analysts search nearly 600 social media and online platforms, spanning mainstream networks such as Facebook, Instagram, X, TikTok, YouTube, and Pinterest, public forums, professional networks, and open-source web sources including public records and news archives.
Every Deep Report begins with a search across our core platform set. From there, our analysts conduct a broad search using the subject’s known usernames, email addresses, phone numbers, and other personal identifiers to identify any public presence on additional platforms. This extended search spans a long tail of platforms that includes online marketplaces like Etsy and Poshmark, mobile payment applications such as Venmo and Cash App where public-facing landing pages are available, and social cataloging and activity platforms like Strava and Goodreads, among many others.
Our full platform list is proprietary and not published. If you have a specific question about whether a particular platform is included in our search methodology, our team is available to discuss your needs. Contact us at support@smiaware.com or call 888-299-9921.
Profile verification is one of the most consequential steps in the discovery process. Misattributed findings create legal risk, and SMI Aware’s methodology is built around this concern from the start.
Before any profile is included in a report, our analysts require a minimum of three instances of personally identifying information that confirm the profile belongs to the subject. These identifiers may include the subject’s legal name, known usernames, email addresses, phone numbers, date of birth, physical appearance, employer, location, or connections to known associates.
Where confirmation is not possible, profiles are noted as unconfirmed rather than excluded without explanation. This distinction matters in legal workflows, as an unconfirmed profile that can be identified through formal discovery is still useful information, and our reports are structured to communicate that clearly.
This verification standard applies across all platforms searched and all report types. It is one of the reasons SMI Aware’s findings are designed to withstand scrutiny from opposing counsel and satisfy authentication requirements under Federal Rule of Evidence 901(b).
An alias account is a social media profile that uses a name, handle, or identity not directly associated with a subject’s legal name or known online presence. Alias accounts are sometimes created to maintain a separate personal identity, and in legal matters they can contain content that is directly relevant to the case but would not surface through a standard search under the subject’s name.
Finding alias accounts requires a different approach than confirming known profiles. Our analysts look for alias accounts using several methods, including cross-platform correlation, where a known profile on one platform references or links to an account on another; associate analysis, where relatives, coworkers, or friends reference or interact with an account that can be connected back to the subject; and overlapping personally identifying information, where details such as phone numbers, email addresses, dates of birth, or physical appearance appear across both a known and an unknown profile in a way that supports attribution.
Despite these methods, alias accounts remain one of the more challenging aspects of open-source discovery. Not every alias account can be found, verified, and collected. In every search, there is a possibility that an alias account exists and is not identified. Where an alias account is located but cannot be fully confirmed, it will be noted as unconfirmed in the report consistent with our verification standards.
Source code, in the context of social media discovery, is the underlying HTML data that corresponds to a specific webpage at the moment it is captured. It is not a screenshot or a visual copy of what a page looks like. It is a technical record of what the page contained, how it was structured, and when it was collected.
This distinction has direct consequences in legal proceedings. A screenshot can be altered, taken out of context, or challenged on the basis that it cannot be independently verified. Source code is significantly more difficult to alter than a screenshot. When a finding is captured with its underlying source code and hashed accordingly, it helps establish a verifiable record that the content existed, in that form, at that point in time. That record supports authentication under Federal Rule of Evidence 901(b) and preserves the digital chain of custody required for evidentiary use.
Every applicable result in an SMI Aware report is embedded with source code. There are limited exceptions, including uploaded documents, client-provided files, previewed PDFs within a browser, and certain archived historical news articles, where source code is not available by nature of the content type. Where source code is not present, that is noted clearly in the report.
For legal teams, the practical implication is straightforward. Findings delivered with source code are findings that are structured to support authentication and withstand scrutiny. That is the standard SMI Aware is built to meet.
SMI Aware delivers completed reports within two business days of order placement. This standard applies to Deep Reports, Exports, and Research Bundles.
The two business day turnaround begins when your order is submitted with the information required to conduct the search, including the subject’s name, a claim or matter number, and a defined scope. Orders submitted with incomplete information may require follow-up from our team before the search can begin, which can affect delivery timing. Providing as much relevant detail as possible at the time of submission is the most reliable way to ensure on-time delivery.
For matters with urgent timelines, we recommend contacting our team directly before placing your order to discuss availability and options. Contact us at support@smiaware.com or call 888-299-9921.
Defensibility and Legal Admissibility
Authentication is the process of establishing that a piece of evidence is what it purports to be. Under Federal Rule of Evidence 901(b), social media content must be shown to have originated from the source claimed before it can be relied upon in legal proceedings. Meeting this standard requires documenting how content was found, when it was collected, and that it has not been altered since capture.
SMI Aware’s collection and documentation practices are specifically designed to support authentication. Every finding included in a report is captured with its underlying source code, which serves as a technical record of the page’s content and structure at the moment of collection. Each capture is hashed, creating a unique digital fingerprint that can be used to demonstrate the content has not been modified after the fact. Together, these elements establish and preserve the digital chain of custody that authentication requires.
SMI Aware applies a consistent methodology and search practices to every report. When legal teams need to establish the basis for how evidence was collected and preserved, SMI Aware offers an affidavit service that verifies our search and preservation methods, supporting the use of findings in court proceedings.
Social media evidence that is collected without this level of documentation is difficult to authenticate and easy to challenge. SMI Aware’s process is built to ensure that what your team receives is not just relevant, but structured to support defensibility.
SMI Aware maintains formal compliance standards that are directly relevant to how legal teams evaluate and vet discovery vendors.
SMI Aware is SOC 2 compliant, demonstrating that our systems and controls meet recognized standards for security, availability, confidentiality, and privacy for data in transit and in storage. For legal teams and corporate clients with vendor approval requirements, SOC 2 compliance provides a documented basis for that evaluation.
SMI Aware follows ISO 27050, the international standard governing electronic discovery processes and information governance. ISO 27050 establishes guidelines for the identification, preservation, collection, processing, review, analysis, and production of electronically stored information. Our processes are built to align with these guidelines, ensuring that how we handle information is consistent with recognized e-discovery frameworks.
In addition, our collection and documentation practices are aligned to support authentication under Federal Rule of Evidence 901(b), as described in more detail in our answer to How is social media evidence authenticated for use in court?
For vendor vetting requirements or compliance documentation, contact us at support@smiaware.com or call 888-299-9921.
Social media content is increasingly relevant to litigation, but it presents challenges that traditional e-discovery tools are not designed to address. Most e-discovery platforms are built to process documents, emails, and structured data. Social media content is dynamic, platform-specific, and requires a different approach to collection and preservation before it can enter a standard e-discovery workflow.
SMI Aware bridges that gap. Our reports are delivered in PDF, CSV, and JSON formats, making them compatible with the e-discovery platforms and case management systems most legal teams already use. Each finding is captured with embedded source code and hashed to maintain the digital chain of custody, which means the content arrives in your workflow already documented and ready for review, without requiring additional processing to establish its integrity.
For teams managing higher volumes of matters or looking to integrate social media discovery directly into their existing systems, SMI Aware offers API connectivity. Our API allows organizations to submit orders, retrieve reports, and incorporate findings into their own platforms and workflows without manual intervention, supporting efficiency at scale without sacrificing the analyst-driven quality that defensibility requires.
Our collection methodology is aligned with ISO 27050 and designed to support authentication under Federal Rule of Evidence 901(b), so findings arrive structured to meet the same evidentiary standards applied to other electronically stored information in your workflow.
For legal teams managing matters where social media evidence is expected to play a significant role, involving SMI Aware early in the discovery process ensures that content is identified, preserved, and formatted for your workflow before the collection window closes.
Scope and Limitations
Yes, and understanding those limitations is an important part of using social media discovery effectively.
Open-source research is limited to publicly available information. Our analysts can only find and collect content that is visible to the public at the time of the search. This means that private accounts, deleted content, and information protected behind paywalls or privacy settings fall outside the scope of what can be collected through open-source methods.
Private profiles and restricted content present common limitations. If a subject’s account is set to private, our analysts can capture the landing page, which confirms the account exists and can support a formal discovery request, but the content behind it is not accessible. The same applies to information behind paywalls, court record databases requiring a login, or platforms that restrict access based on geography or membership. Our analysts will not attempt to bypass privacy settings, interact with a subject, or access any area of the web that is not publicly visible.
Deleted content cannot be retrieved. Once a post, profile, or account has been removed by the user or the platform, it is no longer accessible through open-source methods. This is one of the primary reasons we recommend engaging SMI Aware early in a matter, before subjects become aware that their online activity may be relevant.
Our technology and methodology are regularly evaluated and updated to address the evolving landscape of social media and open-source intelligence. Where limitations are encountered in a specific matter, our team will communicate them clearly in the report and, where applicable, suggest alternative approaches.
When a subject’s social media profile is set to private, our analysts will capture the landing page of that profile as part of the Deep Report. The landing page confirms that the account exists, identifies the platform, and in many cases displays the account name, profile photo, and follower count, depending on the platform’s privacy settings. This information can be used to support a formal discovery request that compels the content to be made available through the litigation process.
The content behind a private profile is not accessible through open-source methods. Our analysts will not attempt to bypass privacy settings, send connection or follow requests to gain access, or interact with a subject in any way. Everything collected by SMI Aware is drawn from what is publicly visible at the time of the search.
For matters where a subject’s profile is private at the time of the initial search but may become public later, SMI Aware offers a monitoring service. Our analysts will check a target URL for changes at an interval approved by you and capture the content if it becomes publicly available. Monitoring is available for an additional fee. To learn more or discuss whether monitoring is appropriate for your matter, contact us at support@smiaware.com or call 888-299-9921.
No. Deleted content cannot be captured or retrieved through open-source methods. When a user deletes a post, profile, or account, that content is removed from public view and is no longer accessible to our analysts. Deletion is a permanent action from an open-source discovery standpoint, and no tool or methodology can recover content that was not captured before it was removed.
Some content is designed to disappear automatically. Stories, reels, and other ephemeral formats on platforms like Instagram, Facebook, and Snapchat are built to expire after a set period of time, regardless of whether the subject takes any action to remove them. This type of content presents a particular challenge in matters where the timeline between an incident and the discovery request is extended.
This is one of the most important reasons we recommend involving SMI Aware as early as possible in a matter. Content that exists today may not exist tomorrow. When social media discovery is initiated early, before a subject becomes aware that their online activity is under scrutiny, the likelihood of capturing relevant material before it is deleted or set to private is significantly higher.
If you are concerned that relevant content may already have been deleted, contact our team before placing an order to discuss your circumstances and ensure the search is scoped to maximize what can still be found. Contact us at support@smiaware.com or call 888-299-9921.
Working with SMI Aware
To place an order with SMI Aware, you will need to provide three things: the subject’s name, a claim or matter number, and a scope for the search.
The subject’s name and matter number are straightforward. The scope is where you define what you are looking for and why. A well-defined scope helps our analysts target their search and deliver results that are relevant to your specific matter rather than a generalized overview of the subject’s online presence. You will also have an opportunity to provide additional information that can further refine the search, including known associates, usernames, email addresses, relevant dates, and any prior reports or images that can help our analysts contextualize their work. The more context you provide, the more tailored and useful your report will be.
If you are unsure how to define the scope for your matter, our customer support team is available to help you develop one before you place your order. A well-constructed scope is one of the most reliable ways to ensure your report delivers the information most valuable to your case. Contact us at support@smiaware.com or call 888-299-9921.
No. SMI Aware does not use Social Security Numbers as part of any investigation or search.
Every SMI Aware report is conducted by a full-time, US-based professional analyst. Automated tools do not produce our reports.
This distinction matters for defensibility. Automated tools can crawl the web and return results, but they cannot apply judgment. They cannot evaluate whether a profile actually belongs to the subject, assess whether a finding is relevant to the scope of a matter, or make the contextual decisions that determine what belongs in a court-ready report and what does not. When findings are challenged, the ability to explain and defend the methodology behind them is essential. That requires a human being, not an algorithm.
Our analysts use purpose-built technology to support and scale their work, but the technology is a tool in the hands of the analyst, not a replacement for analyst judgment. Every result included in an SMI Aware report has been reviewed, verified, and documented by a professional who can account for how and why it was included.
For legal teams that are increasingly cautious about AI-generated outputs in their workflows, SMI Aware’s analyst-driven model offers a clear and defensible alternative. The work can be explained, the methodology can be described, and the findings hold up to scrutiny.
Yes. SMI Aware’s methodology and platform are designed to scale across matters of any size, from a single subject to hundreds of claimants across a coordinated proceeding.
For large claimant populations, consistency is as important as coverage. In mass tort, product liability, and MDL matters, the value of social media discovery depends on applying the same methodology and the same standards across every subject in the portfolio. Inconsistent collection practices create evidentiary risk and invite challenges from opposing counsel. SMI Aware’s standardized methodology ensures that every report, regardless of the size of the matter or the number of subjects involved, is conducted and documented to the same defensible standard.
Our platform supports portfolio-level ordering and management, allowing legal teams to submit, track, and retrieve reports across large claimant sets without managing each order individually. For firms and legal departments handling high volumes of matters on an ongoing basis, API integration is also available, allowing SMI Aware’s discovery workflow to be embedded directly into your existing case management systems.
For matters involving bellwether trial preparation, named representative review, or phased discovery across a large population, our team can work with you to develop a structured approach that aligns with your litigation strategy and timeline. Contact us at support@smiaware.com or call 888-299-9921 to discuss your matter.
Yes. SMI Aware conducts social media discovery in support of jury selection, providing trial teams and jury consultants with defensible profiles of prospective jurors drawn from publicly available social media and online sources.
Juror research through social media is a recognized and accepted practice, but it comes with specific ethical and procedural obligations. The American Bar Association and most state bar guidelines permit attorneys to review a juror’s publicly available social media activity, provided there is no direct contact with the juror and no attempt to access private content. SMI Aware’s methodology is designed to operate entirely within these boundaries. Our analysts collect only what is publicly visible, do not interact with prospective jurors in any way, and do not attempt to access private profiles or content.
For trial teams, the value of a professionally conducted juror report extends beyond simply finding what a prospective juror has posted online. It includes confirmation that the findings are attributable to the correct individual, documentation that supports how the information was collected, and a format that can be reviewed efficiently during the time-compressed environment of voir dire preparation. For matters where timing is critical, SMI Aware supports trial teams who need information quickly as jury selection unfolds.
SMI Aware works with trial consultants, litigation support teams, and outside counsel to structure juror research that fits the timeline and scope of your proceeding. If you are preparing for an upcoming trial or working with a jury consultant who wants to incorporate social media discovery into their process, contact us at support@smiaware.com or call 888-299-9921.