# Intelligence Sources and Collection Methods

> Know the source types CTI teams use, collect within legal and ethical limits, and grade sources with the Admiralty system.

Canonical: https://codelivly.com/rooms/cti-sources-and-collection
Last updated: 2026-10-28

| | |
|---|---|
| Level | Beginner |
| Category | Cybersecurity |
| Lessons | 6 |
| XP | 100 |

**Purpose.** Analysis is only as good as what it is built on. This module covers the source types CTI teams rely on (OSINT, internal technical telemetry, commercial feeds, ISACs and sharing communities, closed sources and human reporting), how to evaluate feeds and communities, the legal and ethical limits that apply to collection, and how to grade source reliability and information credibility separately with the Admiralty (NATO) system.

**Prerequisites.** Modules 1 to 3 of this path, in particular requirements and collection planning.

**Measurable outcomes.** After this module you can:
- Compare six source types by strengths, weaknesses and typical use.
- Evaluate a commercial feed or sharing community against defined criteria using internal data.
- Classify collection activities as acceptable, requiring approval, or unacceptable, and explain why.
- Assign Admiralty ratings (A to F, 1 to 6) to source reports and justify each rating.
- Recognise derivative reporting that should not count as corroboration.

**Practical completion objective.** In the lab you evaluate eight synthetic reports about a suspected intrusion at a fictional port operator, build a source evaluation matrix with Admiralty ratings, and identify which items genuinely corroborate one another.

## Lessons

1. Intelligence Source Types (15 min)
2. Internal Telemetry and Commercial Feeds (15 min)
3. ISACs, Sharing Communities and Government Sources (15 min)
4. Legal and Ethical Limits of Collection (15 min)
5. Source Reliability and Information Credibility: the Admiralty System (20 min)
6. Lab: Build a Source Evaluation Matrix (50 min)

## Related

- [Learning path: Cyber Threat Intelligence Foundations](https://codelivly.com/learning-paths/cti-foundations)
- [All rooms](https://codelivly.com/rooms)