Digital Forensics Unit

Freedom of Information (FOI) Act request ref: 01/FOI/25/008217/O

Version Date: 05/06/2025

The Southwest Forensics Department have provided the following information.

I am writing to request the following information under the Freedom of Information Act 2000, in relation to your force's Digital Forensics Unit.
 
1.Device Submissions and Backlog
a. The number of devices currently awaiting examination.

Please note, Devon & Cornwall Police are unable to extract specific exhibit (device) data. Below is the breakdown by cases. Cases on average include 3 exhibits following triage and gatekeeping processes in our region.

b. As of the present day, the number of devices that have been awaiting examination for under 30 days, 30 days - 3 months, 3 – 6 months, 6 months – 1 year and 2 – 3 years, 3 – 4 years, 4 years +.

See 1a.

c. Your force’s target turnaround time for completing forensic investigations.

Turnaround time is not a specific target but starting time is set by priority as below.

• Immediate Priority – start within 1 day
• High Priority – start within 1 month
• Medium Priority – start within 2 months
• Low priority – start within 3 months

2.Staffing and Capacity
a. The number of full-time equivalent staff currently working in the DFU, broken down by role if possible.

• 2 x Managers
• 1 x Technical Manager
• 9 x Data Forensic Investigators
• 8 x Mobile Device Examiners
• 3 x Data Forensic Technicians

1. Any vacancies or staffing shortfalls affecting the DFU in the last 12 months.

Devon & Cornwall Police are only able to give information on current vacancies.

• 1 x Mobile Device Examiner
• 1 x Data Forensics Technical Lead

3.Accreditation and Quality
a. Whether your DFU is accredited to ISO/IEC 17025, and if so, for which types of digital forensic activity.

Yes for the capture and preservation of data from hard drives, solid state drives, memory cards and USB devices.

4.Efficiency Measures
a. Whether your DFU uses triage processes or tools to prioritise devices or speed up examination.

Triage is used for the prioritisation and identification of primary computer devices seized that need examination.

An examination strategy is established for all cases submitted to ensure work conducted is proportionate and reasonable for the crime being investigated.

1. Whether your force uses any form of AI or automation to support digital forensic work.

Yes.

1. Whether any part of your digital forensic workload is outsourced to external providers, and if so, approximately what percentage.

Outsourcing is being used to help reduce backlogs. It is not possible to state a percentage.

1. Please disclose any regional or national forensic units you've collaborated with within the past year.

Devon & Cornwall Police is part of a regional collaboration of forces between Avon & Somerset, Devon & Cornwall, Dorset, and Wiltshire Police Forces since 2015 – Southwest Forensics Unit.