Internet Investigator

This job was posted a while ago. See more recent jobs here.

Job Description

Posted on: 
September 1, 2026

Open sources – from the www to the dark web – are treasure troves of information. If you can find it! Do you have in-depth knowledge of internet technology, the mindset of a detective, and do you keep going until you find what you are looking for?


What will you do?

A blurry photo: where and when was it taken, and who is in it? A phone number: can we use this to identify a target? What narratives are circulating online, and who is behind them? What does a target's network look like? These are examples of questions you will receive as an internet investigator at OSINT, the Open Source Intelligence department. Using open sources, you find information, even if it is deeply hidden on the internet. On the front end, via social media, mobile apps, and search engines, or on the back end, where you search deeper into websites, databases, or networks, from the surface to the dark web. You use your technical OSINT skills to use tools or, if necessary, create them yourself. Legal, creative, safe, and protected: you find traces, but you don't leave any behind. You produce clear reports containing information that our intelligence teams can truly use and that allows them to continue their investigations with confidence. You relentlessly seek out new, innovative ways of working, keep your knowledge razor-sharp, and ensure the entire organization benefits from this through training and other forms of knowledge transfer. Are you not just an ordinary web searcher, but a tenacious OSINT researcher and a true expert? Then you can do with us what is possible almost nowhere else: apply your OSINT skills to intelligence work.


What do you get in return?

A highly innovative position at the heart of our work, situated right between content and technology. Keep digging until you find what the intelligence team is looking for, even when everyone thinks it cannot be found. Such successes make you proud! Brainstorming with highly motivated colleagues, continuously learning, and sharing and acquiring knowledge. In this way, you contribute to the development of the team and to the role of OSINT in the operational and intelligence process. And let's not forget: to keeping the Netherlands safe.

This is what you get

  • Scale 10 €3,496 - €5,535 (gross)
  • Fixed-term employment contract with the prospect of a permanent contract
  • 1 year
  • 32 - 36 hours
  • The salary is based on a full working week. In addition, working at the AIVD is associated with an allowance. This allowance amounts to €233.77 upon commencement of employment and increases to a maximum of €740.54 gross per month for a full working week.

We offer even more of this

In addition to your salary, you will receive an Individual Choice Budget (IKB). The IKB consists of money (16.5% of your gross annual salary) and time. With the IKB, you make choices that suit you and can customize part of your employment conditions yourself. For example, you can choose to have part of your monthly income paid out when you wish. You can also convert this budget into leave, or conversely, convert leave into a budget. Or you can spend it on tax-friendly purposes, such as paying off your student debt or purchasing a bicycle. The Central Government attaches great importance to personal growth and career development and offers numerous opportunities for this. Secondary employment conditions include various study facilities, company fitness, full reimbursement of your public transport commuting costs, and partially paid parental leave.

We ask this

You know the online world inside out: from search engines, social networks, the dark web, apps, and databases to tools. You combine this knowledge with a creative and persistent way of working. You keep your eye on the goal, with a curious gaze and the attitude of a terrier: results matter to you. Additionally, you are capable of reporting factually and carefully on your findings and how you arrived at them. If you also master a non-Western language or can program or script, we greatly appreciate that.
Furthermore, you possess at least:
• A Bachelor's degree level of work and thinking;
• At least 2-3 years of experience in OSINT;
• Excellent knowledge of the (underlying) technology of the internet and a demonstrably high level of (online) security awareness;
• Provide at least two examples of (anonymized if necessary) studies you have conducted as a hobby or as work experience that you are proud of. In these examples, explain how and why you conducted the research. We would also like to hear which sources, OSINT methods, and search strategies you used in these studies.
• You have a connecting personality, you approach people easily, and you have strong communication skills.
Are you going to apply? Then indicate in your cover letter why you meet the requirements and supplement this with examples of OSINT blogs, podcasts, or research that inspire you. We would love to hear more about this!


The AIVD embraces diversity and inclusion and wants employees to feel at home. Different perspectives, backgrounds, and insights enrich our organization. Everyone who meets the requirements for a Security Clearance (VGB) is welcome, regardless of cultural background, work capacity, age, gender, or sexual orientation. Together, we work on the safety of the Netherlands.

You will be working here

More about your future place in the organization

The Operations Directorate carries out operational activities for investigations by the Intelligence Directorate. The work encompasses various tasks in the fields of technology, advice, security, and cyber.

The Open Source Intelligence department provides specialized services to all parts of the AIVD for finding information in open, usually online, sources. Based on this, other targeted investigative methods can be deployed if necessary. In doing so, the employees make an important contribution to finding the right information as well as to the security of the Netherlands.

About the General Intelligence and Security Service

The General Intelligence and Security Service (AIVD) protects democracy against national and international threats, so that we can live in freedom. If you work at the AIVD, you are collaborative, agile, conscientious, and courageous. At the AIVD, you do work that matters: every minute of the day.

We watch over the Netherlands and its population, often invisibly. To do so, we conduct research at home and abroad. The AIVD does what is necessary to prevent states, organizations, or individuals from obstructing, undermining, or attacking our rule of law. We do not do our work alone. The AIVD has its own role in the network of government organizations that protect the security of the Netherlands.

The AIVD is part of the Ministry of the Interior and Kingdom Relations. The tasks of the AIVD are laid down in the Intelligence and Security Services Act (Wiv 2017).

General Intelligence and Security Service

Details

  • Applying? Send us a CV and cover letter clearly and convincingly demonstrating your motivation to work at the AIVD.
  • It is no longer possible to apply after the closing date.
  • Your application will only be processed if you respond correctly via the designated application button. Your detailed cover letter has been completed and your CV is attached.
  • We ask you not to speak to others about your application with the AIVD. It could harm your application and potential career with the AIVD, and endanger your safety.
  • To apply safely, we strongly advise you to submit your online application from the Netherlands. If you are abroad, please wait until you are back in the Netherlands.
  • A Level A security clearance, psychological assessments, reference checks, and online screening are part of the application procedure.
  • To be eligible for a position at the AIVD, you must have Dutch nationality and (in principle) have lived in the Netherlands for the past 10 years. Certain requirements are also placed on your potential partner and other people in your immediate circle.
  • Please note that the selection process, including the security investigation, can take approximately 6 months.
  • The AIVD uses a digital application process. Please note that completing the application form may involve technical issues. Therefore, do not wait until the last moment to apply.
  • Due to the safety of our candidates and the nature of the organization, it is advised against using AI tools to apply for this vacancy.

About the Operational Specialist WIV/WVO job group

The Government Job Classification System helps employees and managers make performance and development agreements during performance reviews and provides insight into career opportunities within the central government.

More job openings