This Thursday, April 16th, the NYSBA will hold a CLE on Cell Phone Forensics. Anything involving digital data intrigues me, so naturally I was interested in attending this program. While I am unable to make it up to Albany, I do plan on watching the webcast. As I was looking over the announcement the NYSBA had mailed out, my mother noticed something I had not: One of the featured speakers is Joshua Cohen, a partner at the firm where my mother works. I asked my mother if she could see if Mr. Cohen would allow me to interview him for this blog. Thankfully, he agreed! Thanks to Mr. Cohen’s willingness to speak to me, I will give a sneak preview of the CLE.
To start, the CLE will be featuring three speakers: Larry E. Daniel, Nathan Freed Wessler, Esq. and Joshua R. Cohen, Esq. While I cannot speak to what enticed Mr. Daniel and Mr. Wessler to enter the digital data field, I asked Mr. Cohen how he became interested in this area of practice. He told me that after he graduated from law school, he felt it was only natural to go into medical malpractice since he had been a pre-med major. He also disclosed to me that he was really fascinated by computers, but at that time, there were no exciting areas in the legal field dealing with information technology. So, what made Mr. Cohen go back into the digital world? He said the introduction of E-discovery (the process through which electronic data is located and preserved as evidence), it made sense to make the switch from medical malpractice to digital law.
The basic program description for the Cell Phone Forensics CLE can be found on NYSBA’s website, but to sum up: The program’s intent is to “introduce the basics of cell phone forensics” to both civil and criminal attorneys. During our interview, I asked Mr. Cohen exactly what this meant. He told me that Mr. Daniel’s will be covering, in detail, all of the information that is contained on a cell phone. There are many things which will surprise even the most tech savvy lawyer, for example, Mr. Cohen told me that Verizon has a little known subsidiary called Precision. This company contracts with facilities, like the Barclay’s Center, to track spectators and their movements. Precision will be able to show the Barclay’s Center management team exactly where attendees were sitting, where they went to eat before the concert and where they went afterward. Precision combines this information with credit reports and other information to create a “dossier” on which attendee may be able to afford season tickets to the Nets or who would be more apt to upgrade his or her seating at a concert.
Additionally, Mr. Cohen said the CLE would cover how lawyers, in both the criminal and civil section, utilize information on a cell phone. In criminal cases, often GPS tracking of a cell phone is used. For those who have listened to the podcast “Serial”, one might recall that when that case was taking place in 1999, the prosecution used GPS tracking as evidence that Adnan Syed did, in fact, kill his girlfriend.
Finally, Mr. Cohen, Mr. Daniel and Mr. Wessler will discuss how lawyers who practice in the civil arena use such digital data. I asked Mr. Cohen how he uses cell phone data at his firm, DeCorato, Cohen, Sheehan & Federico? He told me that during a case, if he has any reason to believe there is relevant information on a cell phone, a preservation notice will be issued.
This might occur when a parent films a child in treatment; such as an independent medical examination. At this point, the data would have to be verified; meaning the firm would have a forensic expert preserve the data to ensure that it was not doctored, then establish a chain of custody for the evidence. There has to be a forensic copy that is certified including a serial number, when it was stored and by whom. Next the mass storage device that contains the data evidence is placed in an evidence bag and sealed with the forensic expert’s initials. Finally, it is placed in an evidence vault just like any other tangible evidence.
During our extensive interview, I still feel as though I barely scratched the surface on the importance of cell phone forensics in the information age. Given our digital usage and the fact that part of the requirements of being in compliance is to be up-to-date with technology, this CLE seems to be of the utmost importance. I recommend making it to Albany if you can!
Just a reminder, Cell Phone Forensics takes place on Thursday, April 16 at the New York State Bar Center from 12:00 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. The cost for NYSBA members is $95. If you cannot make it to Albany, you can also watch the live webcast version!