Guidance Software Highlights Key Recent Legal Developments That Further Bolster the Validity of EnCase(R) | Business Wire

The New and Updated EnCase® Legal Journal, a Popular Computer Forensics and eDiscovery Industry Resource, is now Available Online

PASADENA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Guidance Software (NASDAQ: GUID) has released the latest edition of The EnCase Legal Journal, an online resource that details recent court rulings and other important legal developments involving the successful use of Guidance Software’s EnCase® software in eDiscovery matters and criminal prosecutions.

The EnCase Legal Journal is a valuable resource for prosecutors, corporate counsel and computer investigators worldwide. Available online at www.guidancesoftware.com/support/legalresources.aspx, it compiles dozens of published legal decisions, mostly at the appellate court level, and other legal developments that validate and highlight unanimous judicial acceptance of EnCase software. Four key additions to this new edition of The EnCase Legal Journal include:

People v. Shinohara¹: EnCase Validated by Appellate Court

This important ruling, recently issued by an Illinois Appellate Court, follows several previous courts in reinforcing the legal acceptance of Guidance Software’s EnCase. The court found that EnCase established the authenticity of key computer evidence at trial. The Court’s published opinion states: "the EnCase software has a computer industry standard built into it, known as MD-5 hash, which utilizes an algorithm to verify that the image it is taking of a hard drive is accurate. Application of this standard during the copying process reflected that the EnCase software was operating properly. Accordingly, we conclude that the State presented sufficient evidence to establish that the EnCase software was functioning properly when [the State Computer Crime Investigator] utilized it and ensured that the images presented at trial accurately portrayed the images on defendant's computer." Accordingly, the Appellate Court upheld the Defendant’s conviction for possession of child pornography. This case serves as controlling authority in Illinois and strong influential authority for the rest of the United States.

United States v. Bhownath²: Court Upholds Legality of Automated Computer Forensics Search with EnCase vs. Manual Investigation of Files

This is a federal software piracy prosecution brought in United States District Court, Utah. The published opinion written by the Court reflects that the FBI successfully used Guidance’s Software’s EnCase software to conduct its computer forensics examination. The specific issues relating to EnCase in Bhownath centered on Fourth Amendment concerns under the United States Constitution regarding whether the issued search warrant was rendered overbroad by virtue of utilizing EnCase’s powerful keyword searching capabilities, which enabled the investigator to search every file on the seized computer in an automated fashion, as opposed to manually opening specific documents with file names suggestive of software piracy. The Court denied the Defendant’s motion to suppress evidence, finding that the evidence identified and recovered by EnCase was properly done without infringing upon the Fourth Amendment rights of the defendant.

For the complete release, click here.

Source:  Business Wire