As you read this blog on your laptop (while scrolling through Facebook on your phone), it seems hard to believe that, less than 30 years ago, home computers were just being introduced and smartphones were but a futuristic fantasy. Digital forensics were not even introduced until the 1990s, and were not taken seriously until the late 2000s.
The internet has changed rapidly since then, as have social media platforms. We may now cringe at the memory of our MySpace page, but our 2003 selves knew the value of those top 8 spaces. Now the screens of our smartphones are filled with icons for Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, Snapchat, and countless other social media apps.
We now spend an average of 2 hours a day on social media, communicating with strangers on the other side of the world in the blink of an eye. Social media has fundamentally changed how we share and access information. It has also affected how a social media investigation company conducts a digital forensics investigation.
A False Sense of Security
Social media platforms offer their users various options and settings to control the “privacy” of their content. However, these settings offer very little in terms of real security. For example, a Twitter user may set their account to “private,” but that can’t prevent one of their approved users from taking a screenshot of their tweets and sharing it. This lack of privacy is also the perennial charge against Snapchat, yet the app continues to grow in popularity with 166 million daily users worldwide.
Users tend to turn a blind eye to security concerns or consider the benefits worth the risk. As a result, people often reveal more than they mean to on social media. A quick Google search for “criminals caught through social media” will give you hours of reading material. But while a quick search of someone’s Facebook page may reveal incriminating evidence, getting that evidence admitted to court is another matter.
Use a Social Media Investigation Company to Gather Evidence
As with all other electronically stored information (ESI), proper methods must be followed in the gathering and preservation of the information, otherwise you risk spoliation charges and your evidence potentially being barred from the courtroom.
Since it is so easy to create “fake” accounts, it also important to verify the authenticity of the information. A social media investigation company can not only authenticate the account and the information therein, they can recover information that was deleted and crucial metadata.
The majority of users access their social media from cell phones, tablets and other mobile devices. Therefore you should choose a social media investigation company that is experienced in mobile device forensic examinations.
Precise: Your Go-To Social Media Investigation Company
Social media info can be useful in personal injury cases, workers compensation claims, intellectual property suits, employee misconduct cases, and more. If you need an experienced social media investigation company, call Precise today at 866-277-3247.
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