NEWSLETTER SPONSOR
Welcome to our October 2020 Newsletter
Our newsletter aims to keep you updated with latest developments in the world of
criminal investigation.
Sponsor our next issue: If you are a company and would like to sponsor the next issue email
Dale at info@the-investigator.co.uk
Have your article published: If you are an investigator, an academic or subject matter expert who would like to include an article in the next issue
email Carol at . You can either submit the written article yourself or we can write it for you.
Company advertorials and advertisements: If you have a company advertorial and or an advertisement you'd like to include in the next issue please contact us for prices.
Met Head of Digital Intelligence highlights digital data challenges and opportunities
Operating in a world where digital data has transformed our entire culture has brought about unique challenges and opportunities for the UK’s biggest police forces.
College of Policing launches consultation on draft guidelines for vulnerability-related risk
The College of Policing has launched a consultation exercise to help devise new guidelines around recognising and responding to vulnerability-related risk.
It wants to hear from investigators of all ranks, grades and roles within policing who come into contact with vulnerable people.
Serious Violent Reduction orders considered for knife crime offenders
Consultation has begun on views around a new court order to target known knife and offensive weapon carriers. Views are being sought about the new personalised stop and search powers called Serious Violence Reduction Orders (SVROs) that could help ensure repeat offenders are more likely to be caught and put in prison.
County Lines crackdown results in major disruption to illegal activity
A week of activity co-ordinated by the National County Lines Coordination Centre (NCLCC) resulted in major disruption to illegal activity across the UK. During the week, more than a thousand arrests were made and 1.551 vulnerable people were engaged with for safeguarding purposes.
New Malware variant threatens smart devices in 84 different countries
Email security experts Barracuda Networks have discovered a new variant of the InterPlanetary Storm malware which has infected roughly 13,500 machines across 84 different countries and counting.
Operation Venetic brings haulage boss to justice over international trafficking conspiracy
The National Crime Agency (NCA) continues to target organised criminals as part of their successful operation called Venetic. The latest success includes the conviction of a haulage firm owner who used the encrypted messaging platform EncroChat to lead a criminal network across Europe.
Joint Intelligence Cell set up by UK and France to tackle immigration crime
A new joint unit of UK and French law enforcement officers working together to tackle organised immigration crime has been involved in the arrest of almost a hundred suspected people smugglers in France since it started work two months ago.
White Paper sets out government plans for sentencing reform
The Government has launched a White Paper called ‘A Smarter Approach to Sentencing’ that
sets out its proposals to deliver on manifesto commitments to reform the sentencing and
release framework in England and Wales.
City of London Police investigation results in jail for crime gang who sold counterfeit, money drugs and firearms
Several members of an organised crime gang
involved in the sale of counterfeit currency, drugs and firearms have been jailed.
National Cyber Security Centre reports increase in university malware attacks
The National Cyber Security Centre has been investigating an increased number of
ransomware attacks affecting education establishments in the UK, including schools, colleges and universities.
Scheme that alerts police to suspected fraud scams prevents £19m of fraud
A scheme called the Banking Protocol that enables bank branch staff to alter police to suspected fraud scams has prevented £19 million of fraud in the first half of 2020.
Businessman with links to serious criminals loses property empire after settling £10m Unexplained Wealth Order case
A Leeds businessman with links to serious criminals has lost his vast property empire worth nearly £10m after a National Crime Agency investigation.
EXCLUSIVE FEATURE
ERSOU – tackling the scourge of serious and organised crime in Eastern England
Last month, when a criminal network was convicted of smuggling millions of pounds of Class A drugs into the UK, it was the culmination of the biggest ever drugs conspiracy investigation in the history of the Eastern Region Special Operations Unit (ERSOU).
A staggering £4M of drugs was recovered from two shipments that were sent to a farm after being imported from the Netherlands. The gang had attempted to conceal the drugs in boxes for plastic spider catchers aswell as disguising them in Jack Daniels packaging.
Cyan Forensics and Susteen introduce rapid scanning of smartphones for child sexual exploitation and counter terror investigators
Cyan Forensics, the Edinburgh-based company that delivers technologies to help policing find child abuse and terrorist material extraordinarily fast, has partnered with Susteen, the California-based developer of mobile forensic tools.
The partnership brings together two leading capabilities to create a portable, easy to use rapid triage capability for smartphones. The alliance will bring Cyan Forensics’ scanning technology to Susteen’s Datapilot DP10 platform.
COMMENT
Remote Investigation Interviews: Here to stay?
The current climate of remote working and social distancing has certainly thrown a number of challenges to organisation, and employees, across the globe. The reliance on technology has never been in such high demand and the likes of virtual platforms to maintain contact with colleagues located across vast distances, keeping some form of ‘human’ interaction. By Gary Rogers Head of Investigation and Audit Services at The TCM Group.
Conference Update
EXCLUSIVE
Live now! Digital Investigation Workshop – Live recording available for free access
A live recording of our Digital Investigation Workshop that we ran online on September 30 is now available to access.
It features a line-up of industry experts from AccessData, Chorus Intelligence, Cyan Forensics, MD5, Re-Knowledge and Genetec who are speaking about current challenges in the digital investigation world.
Welcome to our September 2020 Newsletter
Our newsletter aims to keep you updated with latest developments in the world of
criminal investigation.
Sponsor our next issue: If you are a company and would like to sponsor the next issue email
Dale at info@the-investigator.co.uk
Have your article published: If you are an investigator, an academic or subject matter expert
who would like to include an article in the next issue email Carol at
You can either submit the written article yourself or we can write it for you.
Company advertorials and advertisements: If you have a company advertorial and or an
advertisement you'd like to include in the next issue please contact us for prices.
NEWSLETTER SPONSOR
College of Policing and Operation Hydrant update advice to SIOs dealing with allegations of non-recent child sexual abuse
The College of Policing and Operation Hydrant have today announced the publication of the updated version of its advice to Senior Investigating Officers (SIOs) examining allegations of non-recent institutional or high profile cases of child sexual abuse.
• Federation welcomes plan to equip officers with more effective Taser
• Cyber criminals exploiting remote working during pandemic says Interpol
• New powers introduced to tackle hostile state activity
• Crime groups dismantled by infiltration of EncroChat encrypted networks
• Experts warns users about their discovering of 29 malicious Apps in Google Play
Police should explore commercial partnerships to help combat vehicle crime
As the transition towards connected and autonomous vehicles (CAVs) gains pace, the issue of automotive cybersecurity has quickly risen up the ranks as a critical priority for industry and the government alike.
Threat to UK from serious and organised crime is ‘chronic and corrosive’ says NCA Director General
The Head of the National Crime Agency Lynne Owens has described the threat from serious and organised crime in the UK as ‘chronic and corrosive.’
NCA uncovers £17M property portfolio bought using criminal cash
An eight-year investigation by the National Crime Squad has resulted in the recovery of 59 properties worth £17 million that were paid for using the proceeds of crime including heroin importation and distribution, fraud and money laundering by an organised crime gang.
The National Mobile Phone Property Register is a powerful tool that can identify stolen electronic devices but it is often underused by investigators. Andrew Kewley, Head of Policing Solution at Recipero explains its benefits.
Fast-tracking Automotive Cybersecurity Innovation
While it is hugely positive to see the great strides that the automotive industry continues to make in developing vehicles with increasing levels of connectivity and automation, it is vital that this is met with a diligent approach to managing the according cybersecurity threat. As with all networked computing devices, increased connectivity, after all, often means a greater risk of a cybersecurity attack .
Full Speed ahead in a UK approach to Automotive Cyber Security
As the transition towards connected and autonomous vehicles (CAVs) gains pace, the issue of automotive cybersecurity has quickly risen up the ranks as a critical priority for industry and the government alike. But with so many factors to consider, including not just the development of the technology needed to offer real-time responsiveness to threats.
Staring into the Mind of the Fraudster: can an understanding of the anatomy and function of the brain help combat fraud?
Reading the mind of a fraudster might seem out of reach for most fraud investigators, however it may be possible for us to observe the inner thoughts of the fraudster by having an understanding of how the human brain functions.
Better roads policing needed to prevent increase in deaths says Inspectorate
The importance of how roads in England and Wales are policed has diminished, according to a report by HMICFRS.functions.
IBMi2 announced as silver sponsors for National Analyst’s Conference
IBMi2 will be making their debut at The Investigator online National Analyst’s Conference on 11 and 12 November.
Key IBM personnel will be providing an update of their i2 technology and how it’s helping to support the work of analysts.
Financial crime training for investigators delivered using innovative
virtual training suite
Lawrie Day, CEO of AML Consulting (Global) Group Ltd and himself a former investigator,
explains how his company is leading the way in providing innovative virtual financial crime training for investigators. The coronavirus pandemic has prompted organisations to take a
fresh look at how it delivers training. Traditionally, organisations training people in
practitioner related skills have been required to incur expensive costs for to hiring training
venues and paying staff travel and accommodation.
Conference Update
National County Lines Co-ordination Centre head to open conference
The Silver lead of the National County Lines Co-ordination Centre, Tim Champion is to headline our Investigating County Lines criminality conference on 14 and 15 October.
Organised by The Investigator, the conference is being held online and is aimed at investigators of all ranks and roles who want to develop their understanding of contemporary issues surrounding County Lines criminality.
UK’s leading bug bounty hunter lead cyber hacking workshop
The Investigator is teaming up with international bug bounty hunter, ethical hacker and cybercrime trainer Tom ‘Nom Nom’ Hudson to host this exclusive CPD training workshop delivered via Team on November 17.
It is aimed at operational investigators from across the world including: cyber crime investigators, digital media investigators, analysts, major crime investigators and industry professionals.
Head of Europol’s Digital Forensics Lab to speak at annual DMI Conference
The head of Europol’s Digital Forensics Laboratory at the European Cyber Crime Centre Donatas Mazeika is to headline our Digital Media Investigators Conference to be held online on November 18 and 19.
Challenges and trends in serious and organised crime to be discussed at conference
The Investigator is hosting its Serious and Organised Crime Conference online for the first time to provide a contemporary snapshot of trends, challenges and best practice in this ever-evolving area of crime.
Welcome to our July/August 2020 Newsletter
Our newsletter aims to keep you updated with latest developments in the world of
criminal investigation.
Sponsor our next issue: If you are a company and would like to sponsor the next issue email
Dale at info@the-investigator.co.uk
Have your article published: If you are an investigator, an academic or subject matter expert
who would like to include an article in the next issue email Carol at Carol@the-investigator.co.uk
You can either submit the written article yourself or we can write it for you.
Company advertorials and advertisements: If you have a company advertorial and or an advertisement you'd like to include in the next issue please contact us for prices.
NEWSLETTER SPONSOR
Digital intelligence for a safer world
Cellebrite Adds Cryptocurrency & Blockchain Investigations Solution
to Industry Leading Digital Intelligence Platform
Cellebrite’s Crypto Tracer Solution Gives Investigators Unparalleled Visibility
into Cryptocurrency Movement
Cellebrite, the global leader in Digital Intelligence (DI) solutions for public and private sectors,
today announced the launch of Cellebrite Crypto Tracer, a new comprehensive
cryptocurrency investigation solution designed to accelerate investigations involving
blockchain technology and cryptocurrency. The solution, powered by CipherTrace, features
powerful and easy-to-use tools, investigation services, and training programs designed for
investigators, analysts and non-technical agents. The solution empowers teams to lawfully
obtain evidence and trace criminals who use bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies for illicit
activities, including money laundering, terrorism, drug and human trafficking, weapon sales, and ransomware schemes.
College of Policing to provide online
digital awareness training to 20,000
new recruits
The College of Policing has received Home
Office funding to prepare a suite of training
products to support the new 20,000 recruits
to ensure they are digital savvy from day one
of their policing careers.
Cifas Chief Intelligence officer calls
for status of fraud investigations to
be raised by police and wider public
and private sector
A former senior police officer who worked at
the highest level in fraud investigations and
wider economic crime has called on the service
and wider public sector to raise the status of
fraud as a crime.
Durham Police rolls-out mobile
devices to investigators to enable
access to on-scene intelligence as
part of innovative Red Sigma IT
system
Investigators in Durham Police are being given
state-of-the-art mobile devices to enable them
to access vital intelligence and submit crime
reports in real time as part of an ongoing
project to revolutionise the way the force
records and responds to incidents of high
harm and vulnerability.
Investigators praised by College of
Policing for their response to
pandemic
The Crime lead for the College of Policing said
this week he was ‘impressed and proud’ at
how investigators and other officers adapted
so quickly and professionally to new ways of
working during the Coronavirus Pandemic.
UK police stand with those appalled
by George Floyd death
UK police leaders have published a statement
about George Floyd's death. Chief constables
from forces across the country, chair of the
National Police Chiefs' Council, chief executive
of the College of Policing, President of the
Police Superintendents' Association and the
chair of the Police Federation of England and
Wales, have spoken following the death of
George Floyd.
Fraudsters capitalise on Covid-19
with fake vaccines and PPE in
worrying new fraud trend warns
Cifas
Opportunists and organised gangs of
fraudsers have been duping the unsuspecting
public with a series of scam relating to the
current Coronavirus pandemic, fraud
prevention organisation Cifas said this week.
The Driving Force Behind Modern
Investigations: Digital Intelligence
More than ever, criminals are utilizing digital
devices and data. Today, 90 per cent of law
enforcement cases worldwide include at least
one digital device or cloud application and
most investigations involve multiple devices.
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UK forensic scientists adapt
fingerprint techniques to help
investigators bring Pangolin
traffickers to justice
A team of scientists and experienced
investigators from the University of Portsmouth
have joined the battle to stop the pangolin
becoming extinct, by adapting forensic
fingerprinting techniques that lift finger-marks
from the scales of these endangered animals.
Forensic scientists at the University
of Portsmouth have discovered a
new way of presenting fragile
evidence, by reconstructing a
‘jigsaw’ of human bone fragments
using 3D printing
Forensic scientists at the University of
Portsmouth have discovered a new way of
presenting fragile evidence, by reconstructing
a ‘jigsaw’ of human bone fragments using 3D
printing.
University of Buckingham launches
MA in Transnational Organised
Crime to support increasingly
complex nature of investigations
The growing complex nature of serious and
organised crime and the challenges that brings
to investigators has prompted the University
of Buckingham to launch a new MA in
Transnational Organised Crime.
Cifas launches Fraud and Cyber Academy to support on-going learning for financial investigators and industry professionals
Leading fraud prevention organisation Cifas, will this month launch a Fraud and Cyber Academy that offers a range of exciting new accredited courses and qualifications aimed at providing investigators and industry professionals with the opportunity to develop and enhance their skills in this complex area of investigation.
The Independent not for profit organisation that works to reduce fraud in the UK has teamed up with leading academic and industry organisations to offer both online and classroom-based courses that range from short one and two days to longer courses and post graduate certificates. It will also provide bespoke training tailored to individual organisations needs.
Responding to the unknown:
Establishing a proactive cyber
security strategy in an age of
Coronavirus
As coronavirus continues to spread across the
world, many businesses are neglecting to
shore up their cybersecurity defences for their
new remote workforce. With BYODs (bring your
own devices) looking set to become ever more
popular, criminals are looking to take
advantage of vulnerable devices, networks
and people.
Car criminals will find it increasingly
difficult to steal, clone, strip and
traffic vehicles post-Brexit
Whilst it is only seven months before driving on
the continent for many of us both here in the
UK and for those visiting from the EU will see
changes to their Passport validity, Driving
Licences, International Driving Permits (IDP)
and European Green Cards (EIC), no one seems unduly worried yet except rather pleasingly the criminal fraternity who are
likely to find it much tougher to carry on
dealing in the stealing, cloning, stripping and
trafficking of stolen motor vehicles.
JUNE NEWSLETTER SPONSOR
Tracking and Analytics
Pilot study launched to set new
standards for cell site evidence
Forensic Science Regular Dr Gill Tully is to
launch a pilot study to test the validity of cell
site analysis amid concerns about the way it
is being used by police forces as evidence in
court.
Dr Tully has announced that an unnamed
number of UK forces and private
organisations have now applied to be part of
the initial scientific trials that will act as a
precursor to the formal pilot study for
accreditation of organisations undertaking
cell site analysis. The timescale has been affected by the current lockdown, but the trials will be carried out as soon as possible, with the pilot then able to proceed.
Dr Gill Tully
Tracking and Analytics
Exclusive! Three leading
investigative interviewing experts
debate the complexities of remote
interviews in the current pandemic
To remotely interview or not - that is the
question: Considering the safety, health and
well-being of witnesses, victims and
interviewers by Professor Becky Milne,
Centre of Forensic Interviewing, University of
Portsmouth; Professor Coral Dando, Criminal,
Investigative & Forensic Research Group,
University of Westminster and Dr Kevin Smith, National Crime Agency.
The COVID-19 pandemic lockdown is forcing everyone to seek novel and often virtual or remote solutions for dealing with day-to-day interactions that would normally be face-to-face.
College of Policing offers career
pathway for cyber and digital
investigators
The Cyber Digital Career Pathway Project is a
College Of Policing led and Home Office
backed project to create Career Pathways
and professionalisation for Cyber Digital
Investigators across Law Enforcement. Senior
Project Advisor DI Alan Martin explains the
rationale behind the project.
The Cyber Digital Career Pathways Project was created in response to concerns that individuals working on cyber and digital investigations were leaving law enforcement for private industry. It was also highlighted that despite their skills, individuals working in this area were not recognised as specialist professionals. In addition, there were incidents were the veracity of their evidence had been challenged in court.
Current picture of County Lines
criminality highlighted in new research
A new study of current county lines criminality has
been released by Professor Simon Harding who is
Director of the National Centre for Gang Research,
based at University of West London.
The National Centre for Gang Research has been
established to study youth violence and its causes
so we can inform and contribute to the wider
responses around the issue.
The Centre brings together key gang scholars and practitioners to research and expand our understanding on a range of key issues affecting street gangs, for example: the evolution of UK urban street gangs, changes in UK drugs markets, the impact of social media on gang youth, gang dynamics, weaponisation.
Landmark Bitcoin judgments
classifies cryptocurrencies as
property
In a case regarding a ransom payment
made in Bitcoins to hackers, who
encrypted an insurance company’s
computer system, the judge Bryan J
concluded that crypto assets such as
Bitcoins are property and can be the
subject of a proprietary injunction.
Litigation experts Steven De Lara and
Colin Grech discuss the implications of this landmark judgement.
In reaching his conclusion, the judge considered and endorsed much of the reasoning in the UK Jurisdiction Taskforce's legal statement on cryptoassets and smart contracts of November 2019.
PLUS:
• New technology used to convict man for
infecting police with COVID-19
• Fake coronavirus emails scams emerge
as worrying new fraud trend
• Europol report warns human traffickers
are finding new ways to lure victims
• Criminal network serving 50 years ‘bird’
for importing cocaine in chicken
• Home Office to publish paper into
group-based child sexual exploitation
• Interpol forms a global alliance to
highlight cyber threats during Pandemic
• National Crime Agency recovers
$8 million linked to international organised crime
• New software uses artificial intelligence to investigate human trafficking cases
New software uses artificial
intelligence to investigate
human trafficking cases
Investigators can now search multiple
hard-to-access online sources to detect
human trafficking activity using
cutting-edge new software.
The TellFinder software uses artificial
intelligence to search thousands of
hours of content to both identify victims and criminal networks on the deep web. As the deep web is a hidden area of the internet that is not indexed by standard search engines, it proves challenging for investigators to access.
Using the TellFinder software can help investigators identify patterns across postings from review forums, discussion boards and advertisements that they would usually find difficult or impossible to access. It is trained to decipher so called ‘messy data’ such as phone numbers and aliases giving investigators the ability to search across hundreds of sites.
Dark Web Investigations
Authorship Analysis Techniques
Online Training Workshop
Date: tbc
Join the Investigator for this exclusive
dark web training event run by: Amanda Towler from world-leading dark web experts Hyperion Gray LIVE from the USA alongside Professor Jack Grieve, Corpus Linguistics expert from the University of Birmingham LIVE from the UK.
• Joint training conducted LIVE on Microsoft Teams from experts from the USA and UK
• A one-day event aimed at dark web investigators and other cyber investigators from across the world who are proficient at working on the dark web and who want to broaden their practical skills
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