Case Study
REMOVING THE BURDEN OF FINDING
DIGITAL “PROOF”
How Cellebrite’s New UFED Analytics Platform is
Redefining the McLennan County District Attorney’s
Investigative Process
WHO
McLennan County, Texas
Criminal District
Attorney’s Office
WHAT
Pilot of UFED Analytics
Enterprise solution
WHY
To expedite the analysis of
mobile device data from the
Twin Peaks Gang Shooting
RESULTS
Significantly streamlined
the county’s investigative
and prosecutorial process
saving precious resource time
and money
On May 17, 2015, a biker gang shootout erupted at the Twin Peaks Restaurant
near Waco, Texas, killing nine and injuring dozens. More than a hundred mobile
phones were recovered from the incident, setting the wheels in motion for one of
the state’s largest and most challenging investigations to date. A long-standing
partnership with Cellebrite brought a game-changing pilot of the new UFED
Analytics Enterprise solution in late January, immediately streamlining their
digital forensics capabilities and investigative processes .
A NEW DIGITAL FORENSICS REALITY
The events that unfolded at the Twin Peaks restaurant thrust McLennan County law
enforcement into a new urgent reality. With more than one hundred phones to process,
the operational constraints of their current forensics human resources required an
increased ability to process and identify valuable information in such a complex case.
Cellebrite totally changed the paradigm of the
case by providing us access to the new UFED
Analytics Enterprise solution. Initial arrests had
already been made, so it allowed us to go back
and more quickly comb through the data to find
the bigger picture details we needed to confirm
the motives, plans and goals of these motorcycle
organizations. The solution delivered everything
Cellebrite said it would – and more -- and was
very easy to use.
“We knew right out of the gate that dealing with the sheer number of phones recovered
was going to be an extremely challenging task,” said an assistant district attorney with
the McLennan County District Attorney’s Office. “Our local law enforcement agency gave
us a dedicated officer to review and analyze the contents of each and every extracted
device, but even he could only get through 15 devices in three to four months’ time.”
GAME-CHANGING INTELLIGENCE ON DEMAND
Cellebrite’s ongoing relationship with the county provided a unique opportunity for the
District Attorney’s office and local law enforcement. In January, after meetings to discuss
the available forensics tools they had at their disposal to address the enormity of the
case, they decided to pilot Cellebrite’s new UFED Analytics Enterprise platform.
Within days of the decision to deploy, it allowed both investigators and prosecutors
to import and decode all extracted mobile digital forensics data from one centralized
location for fast and efficient analysis. Call records, text messages, photos, videos and
social media posts could be filtered by keywords and tagged for other members of the
investigative team to view instantly.
In just two months, this solution has not only
served as a valuable virtual partner in the
Twin Peaks case, but is also providing critical
information for the entire state.
“Cellebrite totally changed the paradigm of the case by providing us access to the new
UFED Analytics Enterprise solution,” said the McLennan County prosecutor.
“Initial arrests had already been made, so it allowed us to go back and more quickly
comb through the data to find the bigger picture details we needed to confirm the
motives, plans and goals of these motorcycle organizations. The solution delivered
everything Cellebrite said it would – and more -- and was very easy to use.”
AN AGENCY-WIDE INVESTIGATIVE PLATFORM
UFED Analytics Enterprise supports a complete, end-to-end, digital forensics workflow
that eliminates manual analytical processes that drive time and cost into investigations.
Powerful, advanced analytic engines layered within a server-based centralized forensics
data repository quickly correlate, decode and index all forensics data sources to reveal
critical insights. The scalable platform enables tens or even hundreds of users – forensic
specialists, detectives, investigators, analysts, agency management, attorneys, outside
experts – to collaborate on a case or perform cross-case analysis simultaneously.
UFED Analytics Enterprise simplifies the complexity associated with managing and
correlating forensic digital data.
■■ Powerful analytics rapidly and automatically correlate, filter and mine large sets
of digital evidence from disparate data sources and cases to produce
actionable insights
■■ Robust permission management and secure, role-based web clients support
simultaneous, collaborative workflows to maximize resources, speed decision
making and share case data efficiently
■■ Cross-case investigative workflows enable multiple users to easily and
simultaneously search case data by subject, crime type or time period
■■ Seamless integration with existing agency IT ecosystems and programs maximize
current technology investments
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“In just two months, this solution has not only served as a valuable virtual partner in
the Twin Peaks case, but is also providing critical information for the entire state,” said
the prosecutor.
Our case preparation? Now reduced immensely
due to the use of this innovative platform. It’s
truly transforming how we are approaching
digital case evidence; an unbelievably valuable
capability.
The District Attorney’s office credits the platform for identifying additional offenses
related to the Twin Peaks shoot-out that resulted in arrests. Without this new capability,
it would have been months or years before these offenses were discovered.
EMPOWERING TWO INVESTIGATIVE PERSPECTIVES IN PARALLEL
“The real power of this solution lies in the actionable intelligence it provides to every
user, as the goals can be different,” said the McLennan County prosecutor. “I see it like
an hour glass. When an investigator or forensics practitioner analyzes mobile digital
data, they are looking at it from a pre-arrest perspective; they need to narrow down
critical details to link to one person, one action, etc. As a prosecutor, I’m looking at it
from a post-arrest perspective, so I want to view all the information to paint a broader
picture – why did a suspect commit the crime? Who was involved? What was the
motive? I’m searching to find punishment evidence, looking into the details of a subject’s
life. Both perspectives are equally important, as they tell the whole story, but are
fundamentally different.”
The McLennan County prosecutor said use of the UFED Analytics Enterprise solution
has truly transformed what was described as a previously burdensome analysis
process that prosecutors and others in law enforcement dreaded. Now, once phones
are dumped by forensics, the data is instantly available for easy and thorough analysis
throughout the investigation.
“Our case preparation?” the prosecutor said, “now reduced immensely due to the use
of this innovative platform. It’s truly transforming how we are approaching digital case
evidence; an unbelievably valuable capability.”
ACCESS. UNIFY. DEFEND.
Visit our UFED Analytics page on our website to learn more.
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ABOUT CELLEBRITE
Every day around the world, digital data is impacting investigations. Making it intelligent and actionable is what Cellebrite
does best. A pioneer of mobile data forensics since 1999 with a passion for technology innovation, Cellebrite is uniquely
positioned to address the rapidly evolving needs of its diverse customer base to access, unify and defend digital evidence of
all kinds. Together, our powerful UFED solutions deliver the only complete, end-to-end Digital Forensics Platform on the market.
Our track record remains unchallenged. Our results? Proven and well documented. With more than 40,000 UFED licenses
deployed globally in 100 countries, we allow law enforcement, intelligence services, border patrols, special forces, military and the
private sector to achieve their missions quickly and effectively.
Founded in 1999, Cellebrite is a subsidiary of the Sun Corporation, a publicly traded Japanese company (6736/JQ).
To learn more, visit
www.cellebrite.com
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Synchronization LTD. All rights reserved.