๐Ÿ“–๐Ÿ’ป Maltego: The Ultimate Detective's Guide ๐Ÿ’ป๐Ÿ“–

Alexis DragoAlexis Drago
4 min read

Ever wondered how to become a digital Sherlock Holmes? ๐Ÿ•ต๏ธโ€โ™‚๏ธ๐Ÿ”
Curious about how Maltego can be your trusty magnifying glass in the world of data?
Lost in the vast sea of GitHub repositories? ๐ŸŒŠ
This guide is your treasure map to mastering Maltego! ๐Ÿ—บ๏ธ๐Ÿดโ€โ˜ ๏ธ

Table of Contents

  1. Introduction

  2. Why Maltego

  3. Why Use Maltego ?

  4. Setting Up Maltego

  5. Tips and Best Practices

  6. Additional Resources


Introduction

Maltego is a powerful open-source intelligence (OSINT) and data visualization tool. Think of it as a digital version of the mental maps we used to create in school, but for OSINT. ๐Ÿง 
It helps cybersecurity professionals, police agent ๐Ÿ‘ฎ and so on to visualizing relationships between data points, such as IPs, domains, files, and even malware samples.
This tinny system provides a quick visual overview of all available data, making it easier to identify patterns and connections.
This guide offers a step-by-step approach to using Maltego and explains why it's an excellent tool for malware analysis.


Why Maltego โ“

To complete what was said above, and to summarize and give concrete examples.
Maltego is the equivalent of the cork board with all the evidence from the old detective series
(The famous cork board with red threads connecting all the evidence together)
It is a visual way of collecting ๐Ÿ’กclues๐Ÿ’ก about a specific situation.
Some usage of Maltego is :

  • Tracking Criminals ๐Ÿฆน : View connections between email addresses, phones, and online profiles to identify suspects or organized groups.

  • Fraud analysis ๐Ÿ’ธ๐Ÿ’ธ: Examine financial transfers, fake accounts or fictitious organizations.

  • Cyberattack tracking ๐Ÿ–ฅ๏ธ: Identify where an attack is coming from by connecting digital clues (like IP addresses and servers).

  • Investigative Research ๐Ÿ”ฌ: Collect and organize information for investigative reporting (e.g. Pandora Papers).

  • Finding information about individuals ๐Ÿ‘จ: Find email addresses, social media profiles, phone numbers, or associations with organizations.

Some famous exemples :

  • During investigations into malicious infrastructure linked to attacks like Emotet, Maltego has been used to map associated domains, servers and IP addresses, allowing the location of command and control (C&C) servers.

  • Maltego has been included in investigations by Interpol and other agencies to detect terrorist organizations' financing networks or their online communications.

  • Journalists investigating the misuse of Pegasus spyware (by governments to target journalists, activists, and politicians) used Maltego to visualize and understand the connections between targeted phone numbers and the organizations involved.
    Maltego is also used by police force worldwide ๐Ÿ‘ฎ :

  • Interpol ๐ŸŒ

  • Cyber Police ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ฆ

  • Federal Bureau of Investigations ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ธ

Why Use Maltego โ“

Maltego is a versatile tool that can be used for various purposes, including:

  • Data Visualization: Create visual representations of complex data sets to identify patterns and relationships.

  • Open-Source Intelligence (OSINT): Gather and analyze publicly available information for investigative purposes.

  • Cybersecurity: Track and analyze cyber threats, including malware, phishing, and other malicious activities.

  • Investigative Research: Collect and organize information for journalism, academic research, or legal investigations.

  • Network Analysis: Map and analyze network structures, including social networks, communication networks, and organizational hierarchies.

Maltegoโ€™s graph-based interface makes it easy to connect the dots and uncover hidden connections in your data.


Setting Up Maltego

Step 1: ๐Ÿ”ƒ Install Maltego ๐Ÿ”ƒ

  1. Download Maltego from Maltego's official website.

  2. Install the appropriate version for your OS (Windows, macOS, or Linux).

[!TIP] For Linux users, I encourage you to search directly on the internet for "how to install maltego" accompanied by your distribution

Step 2: ๐Ÿ“ Create an Account ๐Ÿ“

  1. Launch Maltego and sign up for a free license (community edition, the only one you can use at least u wana pay 8k).

  2. Log in to the Maltego client (just follow the instructions).

  3. You are ready to go !

[!TIP] If one day maltego refuses to log you and assign you a license
delete your account files (MaltegoID.activation and MaltegoID.keypair)
on ~/.maltego/


Tips and Best Practices

  1. Start Small: Begin with a single entity (e.g., a domain or IP) to avoid cluttered graphs.

  2. Use Filters: Focus on significant connections by hiding unrelated entities.

  3. Validate Findings: Cross-reference data with other tools (e.g., Threat Intelligence Platforms).

  4. Stay Up-to-Date: Regularly update transforms and integrate new data sources.


Additional Resources


Happy investigating! ^^

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Written by

Alexis Drago
Alexis Drago

Epitech student | Cybersecurity | Devops OSINT | Steganography | VP at B4cktr4ckers | CTF Enthousiast