Google dorking (also called Google hacking) is the use of advanced search operators — such as site:, filetype:, intitle:, and inurl: — to build precise queries that surface pages, documents, and exposed files ordinary searches never reach. Combining operators multiplies their power: pairing a site: restriction with a quoted phrase and a filetype can isolate a single leaked document from millions of pages.
Dorking is the highest-leverage free OSINT skill because it amplifies every other technique. The same operators work across most search engines, and different engines index the web differently, so a fact absent from one may sit near the top of another.