(Representative image)Though cops say the devices will be used to "fight cybercrime", it's a safe guess they will help nail paedophiles, exes playing revenge porn, and sex criminals using photos and videos of their victims for blackmail.
Sources say the software can scan computers for porn images, videos and chats even if these have been deleted. It detects and analyses faces, flesh tones, shapes and curves but leaves no trace of use. This makes it immensely useful in a developing case requiring secrecy, for instance a honeytrap probe.
Three months from now, Delhi Police will have a better handle on cybercrime. The department is all set to revamp its Cyber Cell by procuring state-of-the-art technology and infrastructure for investigating cases effectively. Sources told TOI that police will be equipped with gadgets and software that will bring them on par with their counterparts in the West.
From EnCase Forensic-—computer forensics software of global repute—to forensic workstations, email examiners and digital intelligence servers, Delhi Police has its shopping list ready.
Officers said they feel helpless when faced with cases requiring high-level cyber investigations. From financial crime to terror, cases requiring computer expertise force them to rely on forensic labs or private investigators. Evidence in such cases needs to be retrieved immediately from emails, websites, chat rooms and databases and also traced on desktops, laptops as well as mobile phones for quick action.
Last month, Turkey-based hackers suspected to be working for the terror outfit Islamic State siphoned off Rs 6 crore in Indian currency by sending their own account numbers to a UK-based firm from the email ID of its Delhibased contractor. Delhi Police found themselves in a fix during the investigation because they had to examine emails, email accounts, source and origin of transactions, etc.
The new technology is going to change that. "We are also procuring email examiners. They will not only recover deleted emails but also analyse them from the content of their header, subject, body, etc. They can scan through hundreds of email formats. Besides, cyber forensics will assist us in tracing the origin and destination of the mails," said an officer.
