Link two entities in one gesture
You click the entity you start from, then the one you end on. The link is drawn. If you change your mind halfway, the Escape key cancels everything.
No data sent to any serverAn investigation,
An investigation,
entity by entity.
Put the people, companies, domains and documents of your case on a single map, then link them together. You see at a glance what a list will never show you.
- No account
- Saved as you work
- Your data stays with you
What you mapTen kinds of entity,
Ten kinds of entity,
and links that say what they mean.
Every kind of entity has its own colour and its own fields. And because an unnamed line teaches you nothing, you state what the link means: six months later, you will still know why you drew it.
- PersonName, alias, date of birth
- OrganisationCompany, association, group
- DomainDomain name and its hosting
- WebsitePage, profile, online service
- Email addressAddress and provider
- PhoneNumber, country, carrier
- AddressStreet, city, country
- AccountHandle and platform
- DocumentReport, deed, attachment
- OtherAnything that fits nowhere else
A link can say
- Controls
- Owns
- Member of
- Employed by
- In contact with
- Located at
- Registered to
- Mentions
- or anything you need
On the mapAdd, link, arrange.
Add, link, arrange.
Without leaving the map.
A case scatters fast across tabs and notes. Here everything sits in one place, and every action can be undone.
Every entity has its own fields
A company asks you for a legal name and a registration number. A domain, its host and its creation date. The fields follow the kind you picked.
Four ways to arrange the map
Pull linked entities together, follow the direction of the links, spread the map into a tree, or line everything up on a grid. You pick the layout, the map rearranges itself.
Drag a type from the library
The kinds sit on the left, next to the list of what the case already holds. You drag a kind onto the map and the entity appears where you aimed, ready to be named.
Privacy
Your cases never leave your computer.
Ositra runs on your machine. There is no account to create and no case is ever sent to a server.
- 01
Nothing to set up first
You open the app and you start. No sign-up, no confirmation email.
- 02
Saved as you go
Your changes are stored while you work, without you thinking about it. The header tells you where the save stands.
- 03
Encrypt when you decide to
One password, and your cases become unreadable without it, their titles included. The key never leaves your machine.
- 04
You can leave whenever you want
A case exports to a file you keep or pass on, and the map exports as an image. You can take everything with you at any time.
The method
From a single clue to the whole picture.
The same four steps, whether the case holds three entities or three hundred.
- 01
Gather
You place each piece of information on the map, wherever you want it.
- 02
Link
You draw the link between two entities and you state what it means.
- 03
Arrange
You ask the map to reorganise itself, without losing links or fields.
- 04
Hand over
You export the whole case, or an image of the map to attach to a report.
Day to daySmall things
Small things
that save you hours.
These only become noticeable in use, when a case runs across several days.
Nothing is final
A deletion by mistake, a layout that does not suit you: undo works as many times as you need.
You do not get lost in a large map
An overview stays in one corner of the screen, and a button reframes the map on its contents.
Everything works from the keyboard
Whatever you can do with the mouse you can do with the keyboard, with a visible outline on the selected element.
Quiet audio feedback
A few short sounds confirm what you just did. One button in the header turns them off.
Going further
The craft before the tool.
Investigation mapping is a method before it is a piece of software. These pages explain the approach, what each profession looks for in it, and the rules it operates under.
Use cases
Three professions, three ways of using the same map.
Guides
The ground rules: what OSINT is, how an investigation map is built, and what the law says.
- OSINTWhat open source intelligence actually covers, and what it does not.
- Investigation mappingWhat a map brings out, and why a spreadsheet hits its limit so quickly.
- The methodThe four steps from a single clue to the whole picture.
- Choosing a toolSeven questions to ask a vendor before trusting it with an investigation.
- French public registersThe official French sources, with their limits and their traps.
- Personal dataWhat the GDPR changes for anyone collecting public information about people.
- EncryptionWhat encryption on your own machine protects, what it leaves exposed, and how to choose a password that holds.
- GlossaryAround thirty terms of the craft, each defined in one sentence.
Frequently askedWhat to know
What to know
before you start.
Where are my cases stored?
On your own computer, in the browser running the app. Saving happens by itself while you work, and nothing is sent to a server. No account is needed to get started.
Can I pick my work back up on another machine?
Yes. A case exports to a file you can file away, archive or pass on, then reopen elsewhere. That file holds the whole map: the entities, their fields, their positions and the links between them.
What happens if I make a mistake?
Every action can be undone. Creating an entity, drawing a link, moving part of the map, deleting: one step back returns you to the previous state, as many times as you need.
What entities can I map?
People, organisations, domain names, websites, email addresses, phone numbers, postal addresses, online accounts, documents, and a free-form kind for everything else. Each kind opens the fields that apply to it.
Could the automatic layout damage my work?
No. It changes where entities sit, never their fields nor the links between them. If the layout it proposes does not suit you, one step back restores the previous one.
Do I need an internet connection?
Not for the tool itself. Opening a case, adding an entity, drawing a link or exporting the file all work offline. The connection only serves your own research.
Where does Ositra stand today?
The tool lets you create a case, link its entities, arrange it and export it. Cloud syncing, teamwork, installation on your own servers and more will follow. None of it will change how your files are stored, and none of it will force you to migrate.
Are my cases encrypted?
If you decide so. Protection is turned on from the app with a password of your choosing: cases then become unreadable without it, titles included. The key never leaves your machine and disappears when you close the tab. A recovery code is handed to you at activation, to be kept somewhere other than this computer.
What happens if I forget my password?
The recovery code handed to you at activation opens your cases in place of the password. Without it, nobody can reopen them: there is no account and no server to recover them from. That is the trade-off of a tool that holds nothing of yours.
Can I hand a case to someone without exposing it?
Yes. An exported file can carry its own password, separate from the one guarding your cases on your machine, since the recipient cannot have yours. Send it through a channel other than the file itself. An image of the map, however, stays readable: it cannot be encrypted.