Rob Gerber is a Veritone Solutions Engineer and former Homicide Investigator – Antioch Police Department

In an era where digital evidence plays a critical role in investigations, the importance of effective management cannot be overstated. Traditional methods often struggle with the sheer volume and complexity of data, making accuracy and efficiency essential for law enforcement and legal professionals alike. 

AI in digital evidence management has transformed how evidence is processed, analyzed, and stored, alleviating many of the past challenges. In this article, we’ll explore the challenges of traditional digital evidence management practices, how AI helps teams overcome these hurdles, and examine some real-world case studies. 

The challenges of traditional digital evidence management

Managing digital evidence is no easy task. Traditional methods often rely on manual processes, which can be slow and prone to errors. The increasing volume of data from various sources—social media, surveillance footage, mobile devices—only exacerbates the situation. Furthermore, human error can lead to missed evidence or incorrect interpretations, putting the integrity of investigations at risk.

Some of the key limitations include: 

  • Manual processes: Slow and labor-intensive processes such as redaction, translation, transcription and the review of audio and video files. But it’s not just the actions you take; it’s also simply sifting through files to identify what’s relevant and what’s not. An inability to do so in a fast and efficient fashion creates growing backlogs.
  • Data complexity and volume: The diverse nature of digital evidence and the volume that one faces in processing can complicate analysis. From audio and video files to digitized documents, some of which may be in different languages and formats, the process of understanding what one really has within one’s evidence collection is further slowed down. 
  • Human error: Mistakes can have serious implications for case outcomes. A missed piece of vital evidence or something not properly redacted can lead to consequences that can compromise a case. 

In all three of these cases, AI acts as that extra muscle that investigative teams can use to help them understand what they have, find what they need, and properly prepare and secure it. 

AI-driven solutions for digital evidence management

AI essentially changes the game, automating many processes within digital evidence management practices. AI-powered tools can now quickly sift through vast amounts of data and make it easier for teams to surface only the most relevant information. 

Some of the things AI can do includes:

    • Digital evidence management storage: traditional digital evidence management systems lacked the AI component. Now, there are solutions that can take that centralized storage and combine it with AI capabilities all in one, secure place. 
    • eDiscovery: it can process all the information within a file as soon as it is ingested into your centralized environment so that searches can be made against this data to surface files only relevant to that search. 
    • Redaction: it can now automate much of the redaction process to reduce audio and video review, reducing the burden on teams like records professionals, who receive hundreds of requests for cases and FOIA throughout the year. 
  • Person-of-interest tracking: facial recognition has its uses, but in certain contexts, the results it can deliver are limited. Especially if someone is trying to locate a person interested in complex frames with a lot of movement and objects, now, AI can identify a person of interest by using information that might be known about them, such as clothing or tattoos. 
  • Transcription and translation: cases might have evidence in another language or multiple languages. This adds another layer of complexity and time and budget strain that AI can alleviate individually. 
  • Automated metadata creation: with different AI engines for object detection, facial recognition, and OCR, AI can create metadata for unstructured data within files to make them more searchable for investigative teams. 

So, how do all of these capabilities work in the real world? 

Case studies of AI in action with digital evidence 

Law enforcement agencies and legal organizations across the United States are already harnessing AI to improve their investigative capabilities. 

Late last year, a US legislative body adopted Veritone’s AI and media management capabilities to centralize their media management in one place. Media management and digital evidence management really require the same capabilities (although government agencies usually need even more compliance around security). Centralizing this media means this legislative body can seamlessly manage and distribute various media types to members and staffers from one secure location. 

Law enforcement agencies like the Oregon Police Department and Escondido Police Department have adopted AI-based redaction. This has enabled them to rapidly scale their redaction capabilities to reduce their backlog, especially for time-consuming files such as video files. 

Lastly, TransPerfect reduced their document review size for a complex case by 65% using AI transcription and translation. Furthermore, they were able to take this information and leverage the eDiscovery capabilities of AI further to find only the most pertinent files, helping them narrow down their pile of relevant evidence. 

Looking ahead with AI in digital evidence management 

While the potential is immense, ethical considerations around data privacy and the accuracy of AI algorithms will need to be addressed as these technologies develop. Legislation is starting to trickle out in both Europe and the United States to create a standard that AI developers must adhere to. Veritone embraces regulation and understands that it’s the inevitable way forward for any maturing industry, as we’ve seen in the past. 

That’s why we’ve developed our AI for Good standards, which guides everything that we do. Other companies will have to adopt and adapt to this new operating environment, but that’s exciting for it will enable the continued advancement and use of the technology—especially in the digital evidence management space. 

AI is undeniably transforming the landscape of digital evidence management, enhancing efficiency, accuracy, and overall effectiveness. As AI technology advances, staying updated on these changes will be crucial for legal professionals and law enforcement agencies. Subscribe to our blog here to stay updated on the latest developments. 

Learn more about Veritone's intelligent digital evidence management system