CameraForensics - An Online Service for Law Enforcement, Insurance and Security Services
Lead Participant:
CAMERAFORENSICS LTD
Abstract
We will introduce a new web-based forensic tool for the law enforcement, security and
insurance sectors - one that is capable of providing new evidence and intelligence by crossreferencing
digital imagery online.
By uploading a photo taken by a particular camera, the user is able to see a list of other photos
taken with the same camera that have been posted online. For example, the results may point
to images on social network sites such as Twitter or Google+. The user can monitor particular
cameras and be notified when new images taken with that camera are posted online. This
provides a powerful online investigative tool in a number of scenarios: a user is able to build
up lifestyle information about a person of interest, make linkages that are otherwise not
apparent, or find a camera that has been stolen and is being used to post photos to the web.
A limited proof-of-concept has already been prototyped, utilising the fact that many digital
cameras stamp the camera’s serial number into every jpeg image they produce (known as Exif
metadata). It has successfully identified stolen cameras, in one instance leading to the retrieval
of a camera stolen during an armed assault.
Underpinning this tool is a cloud-hosted database of photograph locations (URLs), along with
information about their ‘digital fingerprints’. This database contains references to millions of
cameras and is continually updated and growing, built through the use of web-crawling
technology running in the cloud.
To be truly useful in the identified markets, the system needs to take a step-change in search
penetration, timeliness, relevance and capability to perform comparisons. This requires novel
research and development activities to be carried out, which this project is designed to
address. Building on our previous work and a strong understanding of the potential market,
the purpose of this project is to prove the concepts involved, a significant step towards taking
the service to market.
insurance sectors - one that is capable of providing new evidence and intelligence by crossreferencing
digital imagery online.
By uploading a photo taken by a particular camera, the user is able to see a list of other photos
taken with the same camera that have been posted online. For example, the results may point
to images on social network sites such as Twitter or Google+. The user can monitor particular
cameras and be notified when new images taken with that camera are posted online. This
provides a powerful online investigative tool in a number of scenarios: a user is able to build
up lifestyle information about a person of interest, make linkages that are otherwise not
apparent, or find a camera that has been stolen and is being used to post photos to the web.
A limited proof-of-concept has already been prototyped, utilising the fact that many digital
cameras stamp the camera’s serial number into every jpeg image they produce (known as Exif
metadata). It has successfully identified stolen cameras, in one instance leading to the retrieval
of a camera stolen during an armed assault.
Underpinning this tool is a cloud-hosted database of photograph locations (URLs), along with
information about their ‘digital fingerprints’. This database contains references to millions of
cameras and is continually updated and growing, built through the use of web-crawling
technology running in the cloud.
To be truly useful in the identified markets, the system needs to take a step-change in search
penetration, timeliness, relevance and capability to perform comparisons. This requires novel
research and development activities to be carried out, which this project is designed to
address. Building on our previous work and a strong understanding of the potential market,
the purpose of this project is to prove the concepts involved, a significant step towards taking
the service to market.
Lead Participant | Project Cost | Grant Offer |
|---|---|---|
| CAMERAFORENSICS LTD | £164,481 | £ 98,689 |
People |
ORCID iD |
| David Ranner (Project Manager) |