As threats to American ingenuity grow, open source intelligence, known as OSINT, has become an essential resource for uncovering foreign espionage efforts before they inflict lasting damage. The Potomac Officers Club’s 2026 Intel Summit on Sept. 24 will host a panel on the role of OSINT in detecting and uncovering foreign nation-state activities. The intelligence community’s OSINT Strategy for 2024 to 2026 defined OSINT as “intelligence derived exclusively from publicly or commercially available information that addresses specific intelligence priorities, requirements or gaps.” Under U.S. federal law , economic espionage involves the theft, reproduction or alteration of protected trade secrets. The FBI has also been cracking down on covert foreign intelligence operatives on U.S. soil.