Davin Teo, Head of Forensic Technology Asia explains the challenges of digital investigations particularly in China, and how they can be overcome with the right expertise and technology in this video documentary with TEH Group.

Digital Investigations on the Rise

Nearly every “investigation we conduct has an electronic element to it as volumes of data are increasing” says Davin. Evolving types of data such as financial records in various electronic formats requires our forensic technology experts to work closely with our forensic accounting experts for investigations.

Collecting Data on Personal Electronic Devices

With digital investigations, one key issue is dealing with personal electronic devices containing company-related data. “We work with external counsel to seek advice, and to obtain consent from the device custodian to access that data. If we have that consent, this opens up a lot more opportunities and methods to capture the data. But we also must adhere to data privacy laws in the process, and so we tend to collect only company-related data on the device” said Davin.

With data collections in China and cross-border investigations and litigations, it is important to have a data centre in China to physically store the data collected and a local team on-site to manage this data. Another crucial step is to have external counsel review the data for state secrecy. Once this step is cleared the data is then safe for cross-border transfer.

More Ways to Apply Forensic Technology

“Education is important, and we should understand how forensic technology can be deployed even for smaller matters with a few hundred documents to review. The time-efficiency and cost-savings are significant” said Davin.

“I don’t think we are going to get away from the fact that paper is still going to be around, but we can minimise the use of paper when it makes sense.” Davin cites an instance where the team created digital trial bundles and assisted the witness statement preparation using electronic data and review platforms to display and efficiently view key documents as opposed to printing multiple copies of physical bundles.

With so many possibilities for applying forensic technology to solve new challenges, “being open to what technology there is out there is important” said Davin.