Digital evidence “more important” than physical evidence and DNA in successfully prosecuting cases

Cellebrite DI has published the results of the 2022 Industry Trends Survey. The 2022 Industry Trends Survey, a study commissioned by Cellebrite, reveals that most law enforcement agencies and prosecutors believe that digital evidence is more important than physical evidence and DNA in successfully prosecuting cases.

The data, gathered from over 2,000 chiefs of police, agency managers, examiners, investigators, and prosecutors, illustrates the extent to which digital evidence sources – including smartphones, laptops, social media, opensource, cryptocurrency, CCTV, vehicles, and drones – are creating enhanced challenges for law enforcement.

The survey’s findings reinforce the need for law enforcement agencies across the world to invest in digital forensics trainings for existing staff, recruit more technology expertise into their teams, and partner with software providers who can help them manage digital evidence more efficiently.

Below are some of the survey’s key findings:

·       74 percent of agency managers agree that there is a growing technology skills gap in policing, making it even tougher for police forces to collect, manage, analyse, store, and use the digital evidence required to secure court judgements.

·       48 percent of police chiefs and agency managers believe that their digital transformation strategy is poor or mediocre.

·       66 percent of respondents agree digital evidence, including laptops, mobiles, thumb drives, and CCTV, has overtaken physical evidence in its significance to solving cases.

·       51 percent of examiners agree that the backlog of devices that need evidence extraction has increased in the last year.

·       The average number of days it takes for investigators to receive an extraction report has leapt from six days to nine days in the last year.

Detective Sergeant Chris Collins of the Lake Jackson Police Department said: “Access to digital evidence is vitally important to resolve cases as quickly as possible, and the data from this survey is proof of this. As digital evidence grows in volume and breadth, investigators, analysts, and prosecutors need accurate data to accelerate the time to justice, and Cellebrite offers solutions to achieve this goal.”

Leeor Ben-Peretz, Chief Strategy Officer at Cellebrite commented: “There is a common misconception amongst the public that gathering evidence to prosecute crimes is all about plastic bags, fingerprints, and DNA swabs. This is an archaic view of the policing world – informed by movies and TV shows – and one that fundamentally ignores the massive, growing role that digital evidence plays.”

Cellebrite’s 4th annual Industry Trends Survey provides an in-depth look at the trends affecting and defining how global law enforcement agencies, military organizations, and the intelligence community are operating today.