Independent review of prosecution digital evidence for solicitors and counsel across Ireland.
Discuss this service ↗Digital evidence can be technically accurate yet interpreted without its full context. DFR examines the available material, the methods used and the conclusions drawn, identifying both supported findings and limitations.
A supplied extraction package can contain more material than the selections reproduced in a prosecution report. DFR can review the disclosed Cellebrite UFDR package alongside the examiner’s report and the relevant instructions. The purpose is to assess how the reported findings relate to the available records and whether further source material is needed.
A focused instruction starts with the disputed proposition. Does a record support sending a message, receiving a file or activity at a particular time? Is the concern about the acquisition, interpretation or presentation of the evidence? Identifying the question helps keep the examination proportionate and directs attention to the material that may answer it.
Review of Cellebrite UFDR packages, computer forensic images, device reports, communications and digital media. The scope depends on what has been disclosed; underlying data and acquisition logs may be needed to answer particular questions.
Examination of time zones, recorded events, account or device attribution, activity after seizure and evidence continuity. A database event does not, by itself, establish deliberate user activity.
An independent expert report setting out instructions, material examined, methodology, findings and limitations. Further disclosure requests and technical questions for counsel can be identified where appropriate.
An instruction is not limited to phone data. DFR can review supplied PC and laptop forensic images, external storage and relevant photographs, video or documents. The available material and the disputed proposition determine the scope. Explore computer and digital media examination.
When making an initial enquiry, identify the prosecution forensic report, disclosed extraction packages and relevant continuity statements or exhibits. Include the particular passages or records in dispute and any trial date. DFR will discuss which material is required and how it should be transferred before sensitive evidence is supplied.
An independent review may be possible using material already disclosed. It does not automatically require another acquisition of the original phone. If the supplied package cannot answer the question, the report can explain the limitation and identify additional material that may assist. Any proposed device acquisition is scoped separately.
Court attendance and any additional work are scoped separately. Where legal aid funding is sought, discuss the proposed scope, quotation and required sanction with the instructing solicitor before work begins.
Can you review a single disputed finding? Yes. A clearly defined question can form the starting point for a scoped review.
Will the review necessarily contradict the prosecution? No. An independent examination may support the existing interpretation, identify qualifications or leave a question unresolved.
What will the report explain? The material examined, the method used, the findings and the limitations relevant to the agreed question.
Tell us what is in dispute and what evidence is available.
