Manage your digital evidence in seconds, not hours

The use of body-worn video (BWV) cameras by police and other law enforcement agencies is gathering pace to such an extent that in the US it has become a core focus for legislators.

Rich Williams, policy specialist, Criminal Justice Programme at the US National Conference of State Legislatures, says some of the factors being considered are who should be required to wear BWV cameras, when they should be required to be turned on, the costs and benefits for law enforcement agencies and what happens with the data – how it is stored and how it is accessed.

The cost of data storage and retrieval, and whether that is done in-house or with third-party vendors, is also on the agenda.

And it is the issue of data storage that is raising most concern with most experts agreeing that in order for BWV cameras to deliver on their full potential, law enforcement agencies must grapple with a substantial increase in the amount of video footage that needs to be processed, stored and accessed for both internal and external use.

However, Taser International, recently rebranded under the Axon banner, says its cloud-based platform EVIDENCE.com allows police forces to “take control of their digital evidence with a simple ‘plug and go’ workflow, groundbreaking security of evidence and a bullet-proof chain of custody”.

“The shift to digital and video evidence should result in increased cost-savings and safety, not more complexity and infrastructure for already cash-strapped agencies,” says Taser International.

Video captured on Taser’s Axon cameras automatically uploads via a docking station to EVIDENCE.com, a secure cloud-based storage and management system, where it can be easily accessed for review.

EVIDENCE.com helps police capture, manage and share their digital evidence without requiring forces to install and manage in-house servers. It also enables greater transparency through seamless integration with the industry-leading Axon BWV cameras.

EVIDENCE.com is a secure, scalable and flexible solution for managing all types of digital evidence. The end-to-end solution automates the upload process to ensure security and integrity while keeping officers in the field rather than sitting at computers. It enables officers to instantly view and manage digital evidence from anywhere in the world using only a browser.

This secure, chain of custody-guaranteed, hosted solution requires no hardware or software to manage, so scarce resources can be dedicated to other higher priority organisational tasks.

EVIDENCE.com offers:

•Simple search and dashboard views, which means reduced lost or misfiled evidence;

•Easy-to-use sharing features, which means increased collaboration and reporting with stakeholders and other agencies;

•Secure chain of custody controls, which means reduced claims of tampering or misconduct; and

•Scalable web-based hosting, which means lower cost of ownership and 24/7 instant access to evidence from anywhere in the world.

Earlier this year it was announced that EVIDENCE.com will be available through G-Cloud 6 on the Government’s digital marketplace and the East Midlands Strategic Commercial Unit (EMSCU) BWV procurement frameworks.

Rick Smith, chief executive officer and founder of Taser International, says EVIDENCE.com is the most cost-effective method to deploy BWV while meeting or exceeding all appropriate UK security standards: “This is an opportunity for a turnkey solution for police forces in the UK wanting to use their Innovation Funds to build a premier BWV programme for their department.”

Taser is in the process of beta testing its next generation of BWV cameras using signal wireless activation technology with the Mesa Police Department in the US and other agencies around the country.