How we turn information into intelligence
We start with specific questions that have no answer online, collect corroborated information to answer them, and build intelligence that didn't exist before. The same standard sits behind every dataset, investigation and research answer we deliver.
Illustrative example, not a real finding.
How a claim earns its place in our work
Official records first.
Business registries, court records, population databases and government sources come before anything else.
Nothing rests on one source.
Media reporting is corroborated by at least one independent source before it's used.
Specialist sources, vetted first.
Niche outlets and specialist publications are reviewed for reliability, accuracy and bias before they enter our libraries.
Serious claims, clearly caveated.
Where a claim can't be independently verified but could matter to you, we include it and say so.
Every entry, checked twice.
Each finding goes through an independent review and a human analyst, and is delivered with its source and date.
Four questions behind every piece of work
Who, what, when, where and how, tied to primary source documents wherever possible.
The causes behind it, and what they mean for you.
How the risk could develop over the months ahead, set out as scenarios.
Recommendations for you to weigh alongside what you already know.
One approach, three ways to work with us
The foundations behind the work
Latin America research
Research on organised crime, illicit networks and forced labour in Latin America, much of it never published.
Catalogued sources
Our Country Resource Libraries record where reliable information sits in each country. We don't publish them. They're how we know where to look.
Type II examination completed
Covering how we handle the data you share with us and the data we deliver.
Is your research conducted within local law?
Yes. We work only with information that is legally obtainable in each jurisdiction, and every inquiry is conducted within local law.
Do you contact the people or companies you research?
No. Inquiries go through people who know the subject or the area, never the subject directly.
How do you protect the people who give you information?
Source identities are protected and never appear in anything we deliver. What you receive is the corroborated finding and the documented record behind it.
Do you use paid or subscription sources?
Where a project needs them, we use licensed subscription databases alongside public records. Every source is recorded in what we deliver.
What does predictive analysis actually predict?
It sets out scenarios for how a risk could develop, based on the trends we track. It's a planning tool for your team, not a forecast of specific events.
See the approach in practice
Our case studies show how this approach works on real questions, from supply chains to illicit networks.