3 min read

Trace Labs Challenge #7

Trace Labs Challenge #7

Hey everyone — Yeti is back with another Trace Labs OSINT challenge walkthrough. Today we’re tackling Challenge #7, which is a great example of how language, culture, and geography all intersect in real investigations.

Objective

Identify:

  • The annual holiday name
  • The city
  • The street where the event takes place

Tools Used

  • Google Images — reverse image searching
  • Google Search — cultural & language verification
  • Google Maps / Street View — precise location confirmation

Image:

We begin the usual way — by uploading the image into Google Images.

Right away, we notice something important:

  • The text in the image appears to be Vietnamese
  • A key word keeps showing up: “Tết”

This is our first major clue.

Step 2: Understanding the Language & Holiday

If you’re not familiar with Vietnamese culture, the word “Tết” might be confusing at first — but this is where OSINT goes beyond tools.

A quick Google search confirms:

  • Tết (often written as Tết Nguyên Đán)
  • It’s commonly referred to in English as the Tet Holiday
  • It is Vietnam’s Lunar New Year, the most important annual holiday in the country

At this point, we can confidently identify the holiday.

Step 3: Identifying the Street

Going back to our image results, we notice repeated references to:

“Nguyễn Huệ Walking Street”

This is a big deal — walking streets and pedestrian plazas are often used for:

  • Holiday celebrations
  • Public festivals
  • Large-scale decorations (like the one in the image)

To verify this, we search:

Nguyen Hue Walking Street

Step 4: Google Maps Verification

Opening Google Maps, we can clearly see:

  • Nguyễn Huệ Street marked as a pedestrian-only boulevard
  • A wide, open plaza — perfect for holiday displays
  • A long, straight layout that matches the image perspective

Using Street View (Pegman) and adjusting the camera angle:

  • We find the plaza area
  • Match surrounding buildings and layout
  • Confirm the image location visually

This visual replication is the final confirmation step.

Final Answer

Tet Holiday, Nguyễn Huệ Walking Street, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

Why This Matters

This challenge highlights an important OSINT lesson:

Names, languages, and local conventions matter.

When working internationally:

  • Holidays may have multiple names
  • Streets may be referred to as walking streets, pedestrian streets, or plazas
  • Dense cities require extra care in verification

If we stopped at the first translation or didn’t understand cultural context, we could have missed the answer entirely.

Final Thoughts from the Yeti

Good OSINT isn’t just about finding an answer — it’s about finding the right answer and being able to defend it.

Language awareness + cultural research + map verification = rock-solid conclusions.

Another challenge down.
Stay curious, stay respectful, and stay frosty. ❄️
404Yeti out. 🐾