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The Scientific Working Group on Digital Evidence (SWGDE) recently published two new documents for public comment; Comments on Forced Minimization Requirements for the Seizure of Digital Evidence and Crime Scene Critical Incident Videography Recommendations and Guidelines. As noted on their site, draft documents will be posted for a minimum of 60 days for public comment.

Additionally, several other documents were recently approved for release by SWGDE, including Best Practices for Photographic Comparision for All Disciplines (v1.0), Digital Image Compression and FIle Formats Guidelines (v1.0), and version 3 of Digital & Multimedia Evidence Glossary, among others. Visit https://www.swgde.org for more information.

You can just press play if you want to, but if you're forensically processing evidence, I wouldn't advise it. Know the playback software, as it is just as important to proper playback and interpretation as the hardware. Take Windows Media Player, for instance.

In the following video I discuss a few quirks about Windows Media Player v12, a shortcoming of the popular metadata tool MediaInfo, and more.

This really should come as no surprise to folks in our industry, as Apple's support of QuickTime on Windows has waned over many years. It's also important to understand that I.T. is going to take a global approach to the new vulnerabilities, and will likely force removal of QuickTime from all hosts they control/manage. Your job, should you choose to accept it, is to explain to them why you are an exception, and to learn more about the available options and solutions to address your environment and needs. There are options.

I just returned from another great week of DME training at our office out on the east coast last week. One of the themes I've come to recognize through my travels teaching the fundamentals of DME Processing, is that even some of the most seasoned technicians and analysts don’t really understand the significance of hardware to accurate and proper processing of DME. It’s completely understandable why, given the marketing messages of some DME vendors, the fact that we're all constantly asked to do more with less, and the rate of related technological advancements.