Corruption Tracker

What Corruption Tracker does

Corruption Tracker is a free, publicly accessible web-based database that documents and tracks corruption cases in the global arms trade. Operated by Shadow World Investigations UK, a London-based investigative non-profit established in 2020 and headquartered at 7 Cavendish Square, the platform aggregates case files covering sellers, buyers, deal values, sums involved in corruption, timelines, investigation outcomes, and supporting references. The database spans 47 years (1972-present) across 70 cases, 73 countries, and 101 companies, and is searchable by country, company, year, and outcome. Users can also submit new cases or corrections through a public intake portal.

The product is built as a single web platform with a custom WordPress-based stack (corruption-tracker.org) and is supplemented by a CATC:H blog, a "Who Arms Africa?" thematic project, an email newsletter, and social channels on Facebook, Twitter/X (@ArmsTradeCT), and Instagram. There is no disclosed mobile app, API, SDK, or AI/ML capability; the platform functions as a curated editorial repository rather than a software product with technical depth beyond standard CMS infrastructure.

Corruption Tracker has no disclosed revenue model beyond voluntary PayPal donations, no paying customers, no funding rounds, and no disclosed headcount. Its user base is horizontal — investigative journalists, academic researchers, civil society/NGOs focused on defense procurement transparency, and the general public — none of whom are monetized directly. The entity is an independent UK non-profit with no parent corporate backing, no venture investment, and no public-market presence; it operates as an advocacy and investigative-journalism mission rather than a commercial enterprise.

Name

Corruption Tracker

Legal name

Shadow World Investigations, UK

Website

https://corruption-tracker.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2020

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Corruption Tracker is a free, publicly accessible web database operated by London-based non-profit Shadow World Investigations UK, documenting 70 corruption cases across 73 countries and 101 companies in the global arms trade since 1972, serving investigative journalists, NGOs, and the general public.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Anti-Corruption Investigative Database

NAICS

Investigation and Security Services (5616)

SIC

Services-Detective, Guard & Armored Car Services (7381)

akta.pro primary industry

Forensic Accounting & Fraud Investigations (BPAHANAH)

Keywords

• Arms trade corruption
• Corruption case database
• Defense procurement transparency
• Anti-corruption research
• Investigative journalism platform

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Corruption Tracker is a free, publicly accessible web-based database that documents and tracks corruption cases in the global arms trade. Each case file contains structured details including sellers, buyers, goods categories, deal values, sums involved in corruption, timelines, actor information, investigation outcomes, and supporting references. Users can search cases by country, company, year, and outcome status, and submit new cases or corrections via a public submissions portal.

Product overview

Corruption Tracker is a single, unified web-based database platform that documents corruption cases in the arms trade. The platform provides searchable case files containing details about sellers, buyers, goods categories, deal values, sums involved in corruption, timelines, and investigation outcomes. The database covers cases across multiple countries and includes references to supporting documentation and news sources.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Corruption Tracker Database A publicly accessible online database documenting corruption cases in the global arms trade, providing structured case files including sellers, buyers, goods categories, deal values, sums involved in corruption, timelines, actor information, investigation outcomes, and references. Supports advanced search by country, company, year, and outcome status, and accepts public submissions of new cases.

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Shadow World Investigations UKcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCorruption Tracker is operated by Shadow World Investigations UK, an investigative journalism organization. The organization shares staff, resources, and editorial oversight with Shadow World Investigations, based at 7 Cavendish Square in London.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI): Independent research institute publishing datasets on arms transfers, military expenditure and conflict. Comparable public-interest orientation and overlapping taxonomy of countries/companies involved in arms trade, though SIPRI's scope extends far beyond corruption cases.
• Arms Control Association: Membership-based NGO producing policy research and data on arms deals, non-proliferation and defense trade. Adjacent to Corruption Tracker's policy-engagement end of the funnel, though more policy-analytic than case-database oriented.
• Bellingcat: Open-source investigations collective with a strong defence-and-conflict portfolio. Comparable OSINT methodology and willingness to publish findings naming states and arms-deal intermediaries, though its scope is broader than arms-trade corruption.

Direct peers

• Global Witness: Investigative NGO that runs corporate accountability campaigns on arms deals, extractives and conflict financing. Comparable non-profit investigative remit and donor-funded model, with overlapping subject matter (e.g., corrupt arms flows to conflict-affected states).
• The Sentry: Investigative NGO that 'follows the money' to expose war profiteers and corrupt networks linked to armed conflict. Functionally overlaps with Corruption Tracker's focus on implicated companies and corrupt arms deals, particularly in Africa and the Middle East.
• Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP): Cross-border investigative journalism network publishing structured case files on corruption and illicit finance. Comparable mission (public-interest corruption investigations), comparable data-driven publishing cadence, and comparable reliance on tips and document leaks.
• Transparency International – Defence and Security Programme: Operates the Government Defence Integrity Index and publications on corruption in defence procurement globally. Most direct functional peer to Corruption Tracker's arms-trade corruption focus, operating from a transparency-accountability lens rather than as a database.

Emerging players

• Centre for Investigative Journalism: UK-based investigative-journalism training and publishing hub with overlapping transnational corruption work and similar London base. Functionally aligned as a journalistic parent organization that could host or spin out arms-trade investigations.

Regional players

• Project on Government Oversight (POGO): U.S.-focused independent watchdog that investigates government contracting fraud, including defense procurement. Strongly analogous corruption-in-government-contracts remit, but jurisdictionally centered on the U.S. federal government.
• Centre for Public Integrity: Non-profit investigative newsroom covering corruption and accountability, including defense and national security spending. Comparable non-profit investigative publishing model, but U.S.-centric.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat2 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/ArmsTradeCT
• Facebookfacebook.com/ArmsTradeCorruptionTracker
• Instagraminstagram.com/armstradect/?hl=en
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/corruption-tracker

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Corruption Tracker