It’s not breaking in if the door’s already open. – Anonymous
(Which is basically Google Dorking in a nutshell.)

Welcome, fellow digital explorers. If you’re here, you already know the surface web is just the tip of the iceberg. The real treasures—the documents, files, servers, and devices no one ever intended to expose—are buried, waiting for someone smart (or reckless) enough to dig them out. This is your detailed, step-by-step manual on mastering Google Dorking to find everything from unsecured devices and personal backups to forgotten file archives. But be warned, this isn’t just for finding PDFs—this is for finding the stuff no one meant for you to see.

---

What is Google Dorking?

Google Dorking is the art of using advanced search techniques to find sensitive or hidden information that’s accessible through the web but isn’t meant to be public. By creatively manipulating search queries with operators, you can dig deep into the web’s most obscure, often unindexed areas. You’re not hacking in the traditional sense—this is simply using Google in ways most people don’t know about.

The secret sauce? You can find exposed devices, open directories, inadvertently leaked credentials, and private documents without breaking a sweat. It’s all sitting there, publicly accessible, but shielded from the casual user by ignorance.

---

The Core Operators

Mastering the core Google search operators is the first step. These are like the tools in your Dorker toolkit. Each one serves a specific purpose in narrowing down your results:

• site: – Limits your search to a specific domain or site.
  Example: site:.gov filetype:pdf "unpublished report"
• intitle: – Searches for pages with specific words in their title. Great for finding admin panels or unsecured devices.
  Example: intitle:"index of /" "backup"
• inurl: – Searches for specific words in the URL. Perfect for hunting for specific file types, directories, or hidden login pages.
  Example: inurl:"admin" "login" filetype:php
• filetype: – Limits results to a specific file type (PDF, DOCX, XLSX, etc.). You’ll use this to dig up documents, spreadsheets, backups, etc.
  Example: filetype:log inurl:password
• -"keyword" – Excludes results with the specified keyword. Use this to filter out irrelevant or spammy content.
  Example: filetype:pdf "password" -site:scribd.com
• cache: – Shows a cached version of the page. Good for when a site has taken down a sensitive file, but Google still has it indexed.
  Example: cache:example.com "login"
• * – Wildcard operator. Use this when you don’t know exactly what you’re looking for, but need to fill in the blanks.
  Example: intitle:"index of /" * "backup"

---

Getting Started: Basic Search Dorks

Here’s where we start simple. We’ll use these as building blocks to level up later. For now, let’s see what’s lying around.

Finding Open Directories:

Open directories are goldmines—publicly accessible file dumps, often containing private or sensitive data.

Dork:

intitle:"index of /" "backup"
intitle:"index of /" "parent directory"

This dork pulls up directories that are just chilling, with no index page protecting them. If you see a ton of files listed with “Parent Directory” at the top, you’re in. Check out what’s inside—could be music, movies, personal files, or backups.

Looking for Sensitive Documents:

Google has indexed countless internal and sensitive documents. Many of them were never meant to be found.

Dork:

filetype:pdf "confidential" OR "internal use only"
filetype:xls "password" OR "username"

This combo will sniff out confidential PDFs and Excel spreadsheets that could contain passwords, usernames, or other internal info. Always remember, stay within ethical boundaries.

---

Intermediate Dorks: File Hunting

Now that you’ve dipped your toes in, let’s turn up the heat. We’re talking raw data, personal files, and logs.

Finding Log Files (Often with Passwords):

Log files are supposed to be kept secure, but a lot of admins leave them hanging out there for the world to see.

Dork:

filetype:log inurl:password
filetype:log inurl:username

This is great for finding logs with username and password entries, often in plain text. You’re not breaking into a system—someone already left the front door wide open.

Finding Database Dumps:

Admins often screw up and leave database backups or SQL dumps in open directories.

Dork:

filetype:sql "dump" OR "backup" -github

By using "backup" and "dump", you can locate SQL files just chilling in the open. These are often backups of entire websites or user databases.

---

Advanced Dorking Techniques: Accessing Unsecured Devices

Here’s where things get fun (and a little spooky). A lot of IoT devices, security cameras, printers, and even home routers are misconfigured and publicly accessible.

Finding Unsecured Security Cameras:

Security cameras are one of the most notorious things left unsecured online.

Dork:

intitle:"Live View / - AXIS" | "intitle:liveapplet" inurl:view/view.shtml

This dork will return pages with live feeds from Axis-brand security cameras (or similar cameras). Not all of them will work, but when they do, you’ve just tapped into someone’s live security feed.

Finding Unsecured Printers:

Printers often have publicly accessible management interfaces. Use this dork to find those interfaces and see if they’re exposed.

Dork:

intitle:"Printer Job" "printer" inurl:hp/device/this.LCDispatcher

This dork will show HP printers that are exposed online, sometimes with no password protection. You could print things, view job logs, or even see sensitive documents queued up to print.

---

Finding Personal Files and Phone Backups

People often back up their entire phone directories or hard drives to unsecured cloud storage or FTP servers. A lot of them are never taken down.

Phone Backups:

Look for phone backups in open directories. People backup entire phones with contacts, text messages, photos, and even app data.

Dork:

intitle:"index of /" "phone backup" OR "iPhone backup" OR "android backup"

You’ll often find people’s entire phone backups here. Everything from contact lists to personal photos could be exposed. Again, ethics apply—don’t abuse this knowledge.

Finding Personal Documents:

People also store sensitive personal documents in public directories without realizing it.

Dork:

intitle:"index of /" "documents" "tax return" OR "ssn" OR "passport"

This dork looks for personal tax returns, social security numbers, and passports. Warning: Stepping into this realm is sketchy as hell, so proceed with caution and don’t do anything illegal.

---

Exploiting Forgotten File Archives and Directories

Entire file archives from old systems, previous versions of websites, or old backups are often forgotten about and left online.

Accessing Old Archives:

Look for backup or archive directories that contain old, forgotten websites or files.

Dork:

intitle:"index of /" "backup" OR "archive" site:example.com

Use this to find old versions of sites or archives of long-dead projects. Sometimes you can dig up entire databases of user info, old research papers, or internal reports.

---

Exploring Unsecured Webcams and IoT Devices

IoT devices are notorious for being unsecured, and Google Dorking can get you access to live webcams, baby monitors, or even industrial IoT devices like temperature monitors.

Finding Unsecured IoT Devices:

Use this dork to find exposed IoT devices.

Dork:

intitle:"index of" inurl:"/cgi-bin/" inurl:"status" "live"

This finds devices that are serving live data feeds. You can access temperature controls, IoT sensors, and more.

---

Tracking Down Forgotten Password Dumps and Credentials

Misconfigured websites often leave credentials lying around in config files, logs, or backups.

Finding Configuration Files:

These files sometimes contain passwords or API keys in plaintext.

Dork:

filetype:env "DB_PASSWORD" OR "API_KEY"

This will search for .env configuration files, often found in web root directories, that have database passwords or API keys sitting in them.

---

Ethical Boundaries and Legal Considerations

Before you go off trying to unlock the internet’s secrets, let’s get one thing straight: just because you can, doesn’t mean you should. A lot of what you’ll find is left exposed due to ignorance or misconfiguration, not because someone wants it out there. Always stay on the right side of the law, and don’t exploit the data you find for illegal purposes.

At the very least, responsible disclosure is an option. If you find something serious, let the site owner know.

---

Wrapping Up: Resources for the Curious and Bold

If you want to keep exploring, here are some tools and websites you’ll want in your arsenal:

• Shodan.io: Great for finding exposed IoT devices and unsecured servers.
• Censys.io: Another search engine focused on internet-connected devices.
• PublicWWW: A search engine that lets you search source code of websites. Useful for finding public API keys or config files.

Now you’ve got the tools, the knowledge, and the right mindset. Go forth, explore, and don’t let anyone tell you the surface web is all there is.

---

THE CHEAT SHEET

Alright, you’re in the deep web treasure hunting zone, and for that, you’re gonna need a massive cheat sheet of keywords, phrases, and target sites. This is your Swiss Army knife for Google Dorking—enough ammo to dig up every unsecured device, forgotten backup, leaked document, and exposed admin panel imaginable.

General Keywords for Sensitive Info

Let’s start with some juicy keywords that, when paired with filetypes, will pull up sensitive or internal documents. Mix and match for max effect:

• confidential
• restricted
• “internal use only”
• “unpublished report”
• “company secrets”
• “not for distribution”
• “classified” (you’ll find some of this in academic papers)
• “project plan”
• “security protocols”
• “employee records”
• “salary information”
• “master password”
• “login credentials”
• “api_key”
• “DB_PASSWORD”
• “password list”
• “default password”
• “username”
• “credential dump”
• “phpinfo()” (useful for finding info on PHP configs, which often reveals sensitive data)

---

File Types to Target

Use filetype: to dig up specific file formats. These are the types of files you should hunt for, as they often contain critical data, internal docs, or leaked info:

• pdf – Reports, confidential documents, government files
• xls/xlsx – Spreadsheets, often containing sensitive financial info or passwords
• sql – SQL database dumps, often full of usernames/passwords
• txt – Plaintext files that can hold password lists, logs, notes
• doc/docx – Word docs, often used for internal memos, confidential reports
• ppt/pptx – PowerPoint presentations, great for corporate strategies, internal proposals
• csv – Data dumps, often contain personally identifiable info (PII)
• log – Log files, can contain passwords, debugging info, or activity logs
• env – Environment files for web servers, often containing DB credentials
• zip/rar – Compressed files, often backups or large dumps of sensitive data
• bak – Backup files, often database backups or critical system info
• conf – Configuration files, typically contain network configs, passwords, or API keys
• json – API dumps, credentials, and sometimes user data

---

Specific Targets: Sites & Domains

Here are some domain-specific search targets for when you’re dorking into educational, government, or military data. Use with site: to limit searches to these TLDs or specific institutions:

• site:.edu – Educational institutions. Lots of research papers, unpublished work, student projects, and forgotten logins.
• site:.gov – U.S. government sites. Research papers, public records, declassified documents.
• site:.mil – U.S. military. Field manuals, internal reports, and technical guides.
• site:.org – Nonprofits, often contain public records, meeting minutes, grants, etc.
• site:.int – International organizations like NATO, UN, WHO.
• site:.ru – Russian domains, lots of leaked documents, often includes older content from Soviet era archives.
• site:.cn – Chinese domains. Possible access to academic research, corporate documents.
• site:.ftp – Open FTP servers. These often house massive file dumps with little to no security.
• site:github.com – Public code repositories. Often includes config files with sensitive API keys, passwords, etc.
• site:pastebin.com – Public pastes of sensitive info like passwords, email lists, and leaked documents.
• site:drive.google.com – Google Drive documents. Can pull up shared folders and sometimes sensitive docs.
• site:dropbox.com – Dropbox public folders, often used for backups and personal files.

---

Dork Phrases for Specific Targets

Some key phrases to find specific types of content, files, and systems people didn’t intend to expose:

• “index of /” – Finds open directories.
  • Example: intitle:"index of /" "backup"
• “parent directory” – Similar to “index of”, but more explicit in terms of directory listings.
  • Example: intitle:"parent directory" backup
• “configuration file” – Finds misconfigured files with sensitive information.
  • Example: filetype:conf "configuration file"
• “backup” – Pulls up backups, often unsecured.
  • Example: intitle:"index of /" "backup"
• “wp-config.php” – Critical WordPress file that often holds database passwords.
  • Example: filetype:php "wp-config.php"
• “login” – Finds login pages, often for admin panels.
  • Example: intitle:login "admin"
• “invoice” OR “billing statement” – Finds financial documents, invoices, and billing statements.
  • Example: filetype:pdf "invoice"
• “admin panel” – Finds admin panels left exposed without login protections.
  • Example: intitle:"admin panel" "login"
• “phpinfo()” – Finds pages running phpinfo(), which gives sensitive server environment info.
  • Example: intitle:phpinfo "phpinfo()"

---

Unsecured Devices & IoT Targets

Unsecured devices are scattered across the web. Here’s how to find security cameras, home routers, smart devices, and more.

Security Cameras:

• Axis cameras: inurl:view/view.shtml intitle:Axis
• Public webcams: inurl:8080 intext:live view
• General cameras: inurl:"/view.shtml"

Printers:

• HP Printers: inurl:hp/device/this.LCDispatcher
• General printer jobs: intitle:"Printer Job"

Routers & Modems:

• Open router login pages: intitle:"router login" OR intitle:"admin login"
• Exposed home modems: inurl:"/admin.html" OR inurl:"/setup.cgi"

IoT Devices:

• Open IoT devices: inurl:"/cgi-bin/" inurl:"status" "live"
• Unsecured Smart Thermostats: inurl:"smart thermostat"

---

Finding Credentials & Configurations

Here’s where you start finding passwords, usernames, and configuration files that someone accidentally left out in the open.

Password Dumps:

• Plaintext passwords in logs: filetype:log inurl:password
• Database dumps with credentials: filetype:sql inurl:password
• Unsecured backup files: filetype:bak inurl:backup "password"

Config Files:

• .env files (environment config files often used in web development): filetype:env "DB_PASSWORD"
• wp-config.php files (used in WordPress, contains database credentials): filetype:php "wp-config.php"

SSH Keys and Private Keys:

• Finding SSH private keys: filetype:pem "private key"
• Searching for private keys in GitHub repositories: site:github.com "private_key"

---

Exploiting Open File Archives

People love leaving old files and directories exposed on their servers. Here’s how to exploit that for some serious treasure hunting.

Open FTP Servers:

• Searching for FTP archives: inurl:ftp intitle:"index of"
• Finding open FTP directories for backups: inurl:ftp "backup"

Open SMB Shares (Network Shares):

• Unsecured Windows shares: inurl:smb intitle:"index of"
• File shares with password lists: inurl:smb "password"

---

Hunting Down Personal Backups and Files

Sometimes people just straight-up backup their phones, computers, or hard drives into unprotected directories. Let’s find those:

Phone Backups:

• Android backups: intitle:"index of /" "android backup"
• iPhone backups: intitle:"index of /" "iPhone backup"

Personal Document Stashes:

• Finding personal document folders: intitle:"index of /" "documents" "tax return" OR "passport"
• Searching for financial info (e.g., tax returns): filetype:pdf "tax return"

Unsecured Google Drive or Dropbox Files:

• Public Google Drive files: site:drive.google.com "confidential" OR "internal use"
• Public Dropbox folders: site:dropbox.com "backup" OR "documents"

---

Obscure & Weird Search Targets

And here’s the dark-web-lite section. Some things are just straight up weird and shouldn’t be found this easily:

• Finding old research papers: filetype:pdf "unpublished research"
• Leaked conference papers: filetype:pdf "conference paper" "internal use"
• Unsecured GitLab repos with keys: site:gitlab.com "private_key"

---

There you go. This is your master cheat sheet. With this in hand, you’ll be able to hunt down forgotten files, uncover unsecured devices, and dig up hidden archives that were never meant to see the light of day. Use it wisely, and don’t get yourself into trouble—unless you like explaining things to IT security and lawyers.