Role: platform-specific deep scraping via Apify actors.
Auth: APIFY_TOKEN in ~/.claude/.env.
5 priority platforms
1. LinkedIn (deep)
The LinkedIn MCP provides basic data. Apify actors provide:
- Full activity history on a profile
- A company's full employee list (if public)
- Search results across many profiles
Actor: apify/linkedin-profile-scraper or bebity/linkedin-jobs-scraper
2. Instagram
- Profile data, posts, reels meta
- Comments (for OSINT/sentiment)
Actor: apify/instagram-scraper
3. YouTube
The youtube-transcript MCP provides transcripts. Apify provides:
- Comments (sentiment analysis, OSINT)
- Channel meta (all videos)
- Search results
Actor: streamers/youtube-scraper
4. Google Maps
Reviews, contact info, opening hours for locations. For research on physical places.
Actor: compass/google-maps-extractor
5. Facebook (public only)
Public pages, group posts if public, events.
Actor: apify/facebook-pages-scraper
Usage
# Generic Apify call via API
curl -X POST "https://api.apify.com/v2/acts/${ACTOR_ID}/runs?token=${APIFY_TOKEN}" \
-H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-d '{"startUrls": [{"url": "..."}], "maxItems": 50}'
# Fetch results
curl "https://api.apify.com/v2/datasets/${DATASET_ID}/items?token=${APIFY_TOKEN}"
Cost discipline
- Start with
maxItems: 10-50for validation - If results look right, scale up
- Log runs to
~/.claude/logs/apify-runs.jsonlwith cost - Warn the user when a run exceeds $1
Use cases
| Scenario | Actor | Expected cost |
|---|---|---|
| Background check on person (LinkedIn deep) | linkedin-profile-scraper | $0.10-0.50 |
| Company employees for OSINT | linkedin-jobs-scraper | $1-5 |
| Sentiment analysis on YouTube comments | youtube-scraper | $0.20-1 |
| Background on a physical location | google-maps-extractor | $0.10-0.30 |
Version history
- v3.0 (2026-05-02): initial public release.