NEWS
DVD?
If you are thinking of using DVD to store Video Evidence or have a DVD served in your case you may want to speak with us.
Call now on 0845 226 3128
Time Check
 By the time you read this the clocks will have gone back an hour you will hopefully have figured out how to adjust all the clocks we seem to have in our lives these days and been thankful that some have an automatic adjustment facility but many CCTV systems do not have that built in.
The time stamp is a critical part of the recorded data assisting in placing the images into a chronological sequence of events referenced against time. If the time used is incorrect it can waste hours when searching images for incidents and poses a potential problem when images are required from multiple systems all using different times (Time Sync).
The time stamp is a
critical part of the recorded data....
 Whether the system is using an analogue or digital recorder the time used to stamp the images needs to be checked regularly (monthly minimum) and corrected if necessary. CCTV system owners should make a record of this action and include any discrepancy as this may be relevant to a future investigation and may highlight a problem with the systems time feature. I often look at CCTV monitors in retail premises and check the time stamp being displayed try it yourself you'll be amazed at how often it is incorrect.
This issue isn ’t restricted to CCTV, many other systems use time to record interactions with them such as tills, ATM’s, computers etc, many of these can also be incorrect so if you obtain data from them try to ascertain if the system clock is set correctly or if not what the discrepancy is.
.....you'll be amazed at how often it is incorrect.
 One way of checking the system time would be to call the speaking clock (123 from a landline). You can then compare that with the time stamp being displayed on a monitor or within the monitoring software or a deliberate interaction with the equipment such as printing a till receipt. Many systems have the ability to monitor their time stamp and adjust it with reference to an atomic or radio clock if this is the case then still check the time to confirm that this function is working and try to get details of how often the time is synchronised.
Next month we’ll look at the importance of lighting and its effects on images.
If you have any problems using time stamped images
please contact us to see how we can assist you
0845 226 3128
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Storyboards
We have found that one of the most compelling methods of using video evidence is when it is in the form of a storyboard.
We will take your video images and produce a document containing A4 size pages with typically six images per page. The images are produced in a chronological sequence and depending on the individual requirements the images may be all of the relevant images, a selection from a sequence or sequences from multiple cameras and systems.
We recently assisted an investigator who needed the video images in a format that could easily be used to show witnesses and interview suspects, he writes...
Operation Hovercraft
As part of an investigation into a large scale organised fraud I had seized CCTV videotapes for several dates from multiple locations. I needed to extract images of the offences taking place for use in obtaining witness statements and in suspect interviews and ultimately in any court proceedings. This task was made very difficult as the vast majority of the CCTV images were not time or date stamped.
Demux quickly reformatted the tapes to DVD format with a time-code overlaid which allowed me to review and create a brief chronology of any relevant contents. Demux then digitised the relevant periods from the original tapes and created a storyboard of video stills to show the movements of those involved in chronological order, with the position of each person highlighted and colour coded. In addition they produced DVD's containing video clips of each counter transaction.
Their [Demux] background and expertise in this field has provided me with the material to effectively investigate the offences and will reduce the time required to interview witnesses and suspects.
Detective D. B. Economic Crime Unit, City of London Police
If you have video evidence and would like it in a format
that would allow you to use it effectively in your investigation or case preparation please contact us to see how we can assist you
0845 226 3128
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Subject Data Access
Do you own or control a CCTV system?
If the answer is yes then you may be the
Data Controller, this is the person who will be responsible for requests from individuals under the Subject Data Access provisions of the Data Protection Act. This applies to all systems not just those operated by the local council.
Once an application has been received and the accuracy of the request has been verified the images need to be disclosed, but it must not be possible to identify any other individual from the images, how are you going to achieve that?
We have worked with a number of local authorities and can provide the sequence of images in a DVD format with all but the images of the applicant blurred so as not to be able to identify any other individuals.
If you have a request for CCTV images then please call us to discuss
how we can assist you in complying with the request
0845 226 3128
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