US Court approves use of investigative computer software.

An Appellate Court in Ohio has held that a computer software product preserves the integrity of data on a machine subject to investigation and that, where the data is sound, it can be used as evidence.

En Case software is one of a number of products on the market that "mirrors" (a misnomer as it actually replicates) the data copying it exactly onto another hard disk. Investigation can therefore be undertaken on the copied data. A simple copying process will copy only the "visible" files and the fragments of data which are often crucial in an investigation are lost. So called "mirroring" copies all file fragments, including small parts of deleted files.

But the order seemingly leaves it open to defendants in other cases to question this and other software. "In the present case, there is no doubt that the mirror [EnCase] image was an authentic copy of what was present on the computer's hard drive" said the Judge in State -v- Cook. Guidance Software claims over 7.500 corporate and government users for its software and trains more than 2000 in its use each year.