Best practices for search and seizure of electronic and digital evidence
In pursuit of providing guidance and support to law enforcement agencies across the globe, the INTERPOL Innovation Centre (IC) developed the INTERPOL Guidelines for Digital Forensics First Responders: Best Practices for Search and Seizure of Electronic and Digital Evidence. I am pleased to present these Guidelines which aim to establish best practices for handling and using digital evidence during search and seizure preparatory and execution stages. Key technical considerations are also identified on the effective preservation of data to ensure that it can support law enforcement in criminal investigations and it can be admissible in court. This guide is intended to assist law enforcement officers from different crime areas who may attend to a crime scene, being responsible for collecting, securing, and transporting electronic and digital evidence. It will also be helpful for supervisors of aforementioned officers in guiding and supporting them. Moreover, it can be useful for prosecutors to get a better understanding of collection and handling of evidence.
As our society becomes increasingly integrated with digital technology encompassing every facet of our daily lives and law enforcement work, it may be difficult to remember an occasion where you had limited interaction with a digital device. For today’s law enforcement community, there is a continuous trend towards investigations relying on some form of digital evidence. While we would consider that digital evidence indeed shares similar aspects when compared to traditional forms of evidence, there are also unique considerations to be taken into account.
The intangible nature of data obtained in electronic form, its volatility, and the ease at which it can be altered, all pose challenges to the integrity of digital evidence. Thus, it is vital that first responders and law enforcement practitioners are able to properly identify and handle digital evidence ensuring that the latter stages of the digital forensic process can be performed on the basis of sound judgement.
I am grateful for the contribution of the IC team, particularly its Digital Forensics Laboratory (DFL) for sharing their knowledge and subject matter expertise. I also extend my thanks to our colleagues from the INTERPOL Capacity Building and Training Directorate (CBT) who have supported this initiative and will utilize the Guidelines in the context of projects focused on enhancing digital forensic capabilities. Finally, I would like to thank the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs for its generous support.
The Guidelines are a reflection of INTERPOL’s sustained efforts in fostering international police cooperation and our commitment to assist our member countries in response to the complex global security challenges in the digital domain.
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