Chain of Custody
It is vital that the evidence collected at the crime scene conforms to a valid timeline.
- Digital information is susceptible to tampering
- access to the evidence must be tightly controlled
- Once evidence has been bagged, it must not subsequently be handled or inspected
Chain of custody is a record of evidence-handling from collection to presentation in court to disposal.
- records where, when, and who collected the evidence, who subsequently handled it, and where it was stored
- must show access to, plus storage and transportation of, the evidence at every point from the crime scene to the courtroom.
- can include hardware components, electronic data, or telephone systems
- Everyone who handles the evidence must sign the chain of custody and indicate what they were doing with it
- establishes the integrity and proper handling of evidence
- protects an organization against accusations that evidence has either
- been tampered with
- or is different than it was when it was collected
- Every person in the chain who handles evidence must log the methods and tools they used
- evidence should be stored in a secure facility
- has access control and environmental control