Mass intensity values, isotopic ratios and exact mass differences between isotopes may be obtained and analyzed to determine if there are one or more masses of interest. In one implementation, a method will look among the mass intensity values for peaks of interest. The mass intensity values, representative of isotopic signatures, will be compared to a criteria in order to determine which of the masses are of interest. Although the invention is not so limited, examples of such criteria include mass intensity values above a specified threshold, within a certain ratio of another mass intensity value, and / or separation between the masses themselves. Optionally, a tolerance may be applied to the criteria. If masses are found to be of interest, MS / MS can automatically be triggered for one or all of the masses of interest, when an analyzing system such as an LC-MS-MS, GC-MS-MS or MALDI-MS-MS system is used.