Is Murder Different From Homicide?

Posted on September 1, 2022August 17, 2022 by EclipseForensics

Being an eye-witness to murder or even being charged with homicide can be traumatizing. According to a recent report, the murder and homicide rate in the United States was 6.52 percent in 2020. Also, per the CCJ report, homicide rates fell by 2% in the first half of 2022.

Ever wondered how many kinds of murders are there after watching “Child’s play”? Is there a difference between these killings? Most people often get confused between homicide, murder, and manslaughter.

They read the headlines or watch slasher movies and wonder why one murder convict gets a jail term while another gets incarceration for manslaughter. When people encounter terminology like “felony murder,” it becomes more perplexing. In the end, aren’t they all violent crimes?

It’s a prevalent misconception that murder and homicide are synonymous things. These two offenses differ from one another in terms of the law. Each one has a harsh punishment.

The aspects of homicide and murder necessitate a more thorough examination of both criminal codes. For that matter, Eclipse Forensics has compiled a guide to help you understand the difference between a homicide and murder.

Take a look at this guide to understand the main distinction between the two terms.

What Is Homicide?

We frequently associate murder and manslaughter with the phrase “homicide.” These are only two kinds of homicides. Homicide includes all types of murder, including those committed intentionally, negligently, or recklessly. It also includes legal killings such as those committed in self-defense, manslaughter, murder, and state-sanctioned killings.

What Is Murder?

Murder is a category of homicide in which a person kills another person. The following are the common types of murders:

1. First-Degree Murder

It is defined as a planned murder. For example, O.J. Simpson was accused of 2 first-degree murders, one of his ex-wife and another of an un-related citizen. The prosecutor filed the charges based on evidence found at the murder site, such as a bloody glove and information that Simpson may have monitored his spouse before the murders.

2. Second-Degree Murder

It is any murder committed without any premeditated motive. A famous example of a second-degree case is the George Zimmerman lawsuit. George shot Trayvon Martin African-American high school student, without any premeditated motive back in 2012.

3. Felony Murder

Let’s imagine that Bonnie and Clyde commit a bank robbery. Clyde shots the security personnel during a fight. Later he is charged with first-degree murder. Bonnie was accused of committing felony murder as she actively participated in the felony crime when the worker died.

How Can A Forensic Expert Help You?

You need to be aware of your choices and how to act if you’ve been accused of a criminal offense or if you intend to sue someone. Working with knowledgeable digital forensics professionals will help you reach a fruitful and satisfying solution for your case.

Expert digital forensic engineers are equipped with the necessary tools to examine digital evidence without turning on a computer. As a result, firms must always use professionals to collect and restore data.

Hire A Professional Forensic Expert In Florida

If you’re looking for qualified and trustworthy digital forensics specialists, get in touch with Eclipse Forensics in Florida. Our team has substantial knowledge and experience in collecting, assessing, and providing digital evidence in judicial cases. Call us right away for additional information about our digital forensic solutions.

Essential Steps Of Crime Scene Evaluation

Posted on August 26, 2022August 17, 2022 by EclipseForensics

The CCJ evaluated the crime rate of twenty-nine cities. The report was released this Thursday. The report states homicide rates fell by 2% in the first half of 2022. However, this decrease is unsatisfactory. The report also stated about other crimes with their increased rates like robbery (19%), property theft (6%), and car theft (15%).

This hike has alarmed corporate companies and law enforcement departments. These sectors are now working on creating the best forensic teams to help them solve any crimes, whether IP theft or a murder case.

Have you ever wondered how a crime scene is evaluated? Take a look at this guide to learn about some essential steps of crime scene evaluation.

1. Examine The Crime Site

the law enforcement officers and detectives rush to the site when a crime is reported. The first step is to examine the crime scene. The team studies the site, nearby locations, the site’s utensils, blood samples, food samples, body (if any), phone data, computer data, CCTV footage, and collects other forensic evidence. This practice helps them to find clues to solve the crime.

2. Take Photographs

It’s best to take pictures after collecting all the required samples. This practice helps law enforcement officers to assess the crime scene more carefully. Also, if a criminal destroys any evidence, these pictures will help the officers identify what was stolen or destroyed.

3. Seal The Crime Site

The police seal the crime scene after examining the site and collecting all the evidence. This step helps them to keep the suspects and criminals away from the site. In some cases, the criminal returns to the site to destroy the evidence or retrieve their belonging left at the crime scene.

4. Speaking To Eyewitnesses/Nearby People

The next step is to speak to eyewitnesses or people living nearby the crime site. This practice helps the investigators to find the suspects and have a clear perspective about the victim’s life and intrapersonal relations with family and friends.

5. Conducting A Secondary Survey

The investigators and forensics team conduct a secondary survey to ensure no clues are left behind, and all the pieces are connected to find the criminal.

6. Catch The Criminal

After completing all pieces of the puzzle, you will have a prime suspect/criminal. The final step is to arrest the criminal and present it to the court.

Why Your Company/Department Needs Cyber Forensic Experts

The term “intellectual property theft” describes situations in which a person steals a product or an idea from a business or another person. Theft of a company’s private information, brand names, copyrights, and designs are all examples of IP theft.

However, recognizing IP theft can be intimidating in a world where a few clicks can jeopardize a firm’s private data. This is where digital forensic experts come into the picture. Experts in digital forensics are essential for successfully managing cases of potential intellectual property theft.

Get In Touch With One Of The Most Reliable And Trustworthy Cyber Forensic Service Provider In Florida

Are you looking for a professional cyber forensic expert in Florida? Eclipse Forensicsis here to help you. We aim to help other companies and departments to shield their companies against cybercrimes. We have worked on numerous cases since 2005 for governmental agencies, independent lawyers, and citizens.

We provide affordable audio forensics, video forensics, and data forensics services. Contact us now for more details about our premium services.

Can Cassette Tapes Be Repaired? Everything You Need to Know

Posted on August 22, 2022August 17, 2022 by EclipseForensics

The cassette hype is back, thanks to the rapidly changing music industry. While there’s no doubting the eroticism of the ’80s’ most lyrical singers or the sensory thrill of ’80s-style recordings, the newfound interest in cassette tapes has perplexed auditory specialists.

What if a cassette has the answer to a murder mystery? Or a cassette tape can help to solve a ransom threat case? There are a lot of possibilities. The law enforcement department always has a digital forensic team to analyze all the digital evidence.

However, most people often get confused when they find a damaged cassette that may contain evidence. This blog will help you understand the options you may have to repair the tape. Take a look at this guide to understand whether cassette tapes go bad over time and if they can be repaired for forensic analysis.

Can Cassettes Go Bad?

There are key aspects to think about for cassette tape storage and use to ensure that the cassettes last longer, regardless of how old or new your cassettes are. You must always digitize your audio recordings since magnetic tapes, like cassettes, can degrade over time.

All magnetic tape formats, including cassette tapes, reel-to-reel tapes, 8-track cassettes, and VHS, have the chance to “go bad.”

Magnetic cassettes are primarily glued using a gelatin-like adhesive that binds thin taping and magnetic strips together. Any magnetic cassette requires two adhesive layers for it to function. It is possible for the binder layer on cassettes, VHS, etc., to become less durable and lubricious. The coating can become sticky if you don’t use the tape. It’s best to use the tapes once or twice per year.

Can Cassette Tapes Be Repaired?

Yes, cassette tapes can be repaired. The following are the two common ways a tape can be destroyed with their solutions.

1. Physical Damage

Audiotapes can suffer significant damage from rips, entanglement, and tears. The only method for repairing an audiotape that has been torn is to patch the tear with splicing tape. In these cases, it’s best to seek assistance from a specialized tape repair service provider rather than attempting to fix your tape yourself.

2. Water Damage

Cassette tapes can be affected by water damage. It’s normal for cassettes of all types to undergo water damage if your cassettes are drenched in groundwater or have just been kept in a moist location like a cellar. There are methods for cleaning tapes with fungal growth. However, it is better to seek the advice of a seasoned repair company to avoid damaging the tape.

Get In Touch With One Of The Most Trustworthy Cyber Forensic Service Providers In Florida

Novice forensic experts often miss various digital evidence identification and marking types. While a computer may appear to be a single unit, professional digital forensics companies will identify and classify every part of the machine that retains data as digital evidence.

If you’re looking for qualified and trustworthy digital forensics experts, get in touch with Eclipse Forensics in Florida. Our team has extensive training and experience handling, analyzing, and delivering digital evidence in legal proceedings. Call us today for more details about our premium services.

Understanding The Challenges Faced By Digital Forensic Experts

Posted on August 17, 2022August 17, 2022 by EclipseForensics

Have you ever been fascinated by the forensic team’s skills after watching Brooklyn Ninety-Nine or Lucifer? Well, it may look fun and easy, but it isn’t a piece of cake. Solving a case requires hard work, focus, and training skills.

Digital forensic experts have to face some challenges when investigating a case, from collecting data to putting the missing pieces to find the culprit. Take a look at this guide to understand the challenges digital forensic experts face.

1. Technical Difficulties Faced By Digital Forensic Experts

Sometimes, while a case is being investigated, the culprit removes/destroys the hard drives before the forensic investigators can get their hands on them. In such cases, the information obtained from the software system has no value as evidence.

There are instances where perpetrators reset their smartphones, making it impossible for the forensic expert to retrieve the necessary evidence. Therefore, in such circumstances, a digital forensics expert faces difficulties while trying to extract communication evidence from the smartphone. Investigators search for backups in this case to collect any evidence.

2. The Complexity Challenge Faced By Digital Forensic Experts

Digital technological advancements have made it possible to collect and examine large data collections. Nowadays, heterogeneous large-scale data collection is done on the lowest data format.

These vast data sources require complex toolkits for data reduction to arrange data for evaluation. This creates a complex issue for the forensics team, as new information reduction algorithms must maintain pace with the volume and variety of data being received.

3. Legal Challenges Faced By Digital Forensic Experts

Gathering digital forensic evidence for an investigation gets more difficult due to the constant changes in confidentiality and data protection rules. For example, a criminal’s computer/smartphone may contain some confidential information. When the investigation is being conducted, this data might be helpful. However, obtaining such information can be illegal in some jurisdictions.

Most businesses now support the BYOD philosophy policy. Employees are permitted to access official emails using their smartphones. Forensic investigators now have to cope with another difficult hurdle when collecting evidence for their cases.

4. Vast Amount Of Data

Mobile forensics specialists must assess data after it has been acquired. They might only be looking for a specific category of data based on the nature of the lawsuit. However, a wide range of data types may be relevant in complex circumstances, including contacts, images, texts, and much more. As a result, the procedure could take longer and require several technical fixes.

Forensic Expert Witnesses at Eclipse Forensics

We are here to assist if you need trustworthy cyber forensic expert witnesses. We offer forensic investigations, video enhancement, and audio authentication services at affordable prices. We use cutting-end advanced technologies to recover data and pertinent documentation about a criminal investigation.

We have collaborated with law enforcement agencies, independent lawyers, and citizens to help solve their cases. We are always available to help to assess any audio, video, and data forensics to meet your objectives. Contact us to learn more about our premium services.

5 Questions to Ask When Hiring a Private Digital Crime Lab

Posted on July 22, 2022July 29, 2022 by EclipseForensics

Digital forensic services and private crime labs can help organizations process digital evidence effectively. While several digital crime labs are working in the USA, not all offer the same level of services. The forensics experts you choose must have the right expertise and knowledge to conduct an investigation thoroughly to bring the criminals to justice.

Reliable cyber forensics experts will evaluate and analyze digital evidence based on pre-determined criteria. Thus, ask your digital crime lab services the following questions to ensure their credibility and professionalism:

1. What are your qualifications?

Digital evidence can be rendered irrelevant in the court due to the lack of qualifications, knowledge, and experience of the candidate presenting them. Therefore, you should ask your forensics team about their qualifications, certifications, and work experience to make the most out of their services.

2. Does your lab maintain any accreditation?

Third-party organizations offering accreditation to federal and state crime labs also provide their services to private digital crime labs. Maintaining accreditation ensures that the private forensics services follow standard procedures and policies, use the right tools, and train their team to handle projects professionally. Thus, ensure your crime lab maintains accreditation to validate your findings in court.

3. Can I review a sample of your findings report?

A reputable private lab provides a detailed explanation and in-depth investigation of their findings in a report. Therefore, always ask your chosen digital forensics crime lab for a sample report to understand their reporting skills. The report should be easy to understand, concise, and clear for the judges and attorneys to understand. Don’t hesitate to ask them questions regarding the report findings!

4. How much will it cost?

Don’t be afraid to ask about the overall costs before hiring a crime lab services. Firms that give vague answers to this question must be considered a red flag. On the other hand, reliable services will give you a fixed estimate depending on the nature of the investigation and the time required for surveillance.

5. Do you have any specialty?

Many crime labs specialize in audio and video forensic services. Therefore, consult a private crime lab specializing in a specific forensic investigation for optimum results.

If you’re interested in getting help from a reliable video analysis expert, we can help! At Eclipse Forensics, our team takes pride in offering high-quality audio and video forensic services at affordable rates. Learn more about us here.

How Digital Forensics Helps in IP Theft Cases

Posted on July 18, 2022July 18, 2022 by EclipseForensics

Intellectual property theft is the expression used to describe a situation where someone steals an idea or invention from a company or individual. It also refers to cyber criminals stealing a firm’s trade secrets, trademarks, copyrights, and patents. Unfortunately, identifying IP theft can be challenging in a world where a few clicks can compromise a company’s trade secrets.

Digital forensic experts play a critical role in handling potential IP theft cases effectively. Here’s how cyber forensics are used in IP theft investigations:

Using Forensics to Identify IP Theft

Most IP theft perpetrators are the company’s employees. Thus, asking your IT team to track evidence may raise conflicts of interest or bias. Furthermore, your IT team might not have the right skills and knowledge required to track down the intangible assets. Thus, companies must rely on professional digital forensic engineers to trace and preserve the collected evidence. Here are some effective methods of digital forensics used for handling IP theft cases:

Use of Devices – a reliable digital forensic team will preserve any crime-related electronic devicesfor the authorities to inspect. They will shut down the access to all related devices upon suspecting an IP theft. The investigation will proceed to identify and harvest data that might help experts determine the crime.
An In-depth Analysis of Data – a successful digital forensic investigation goes beyond analyzing communication contents and user movement. A detailed examination will show exactly what happened during the cybercrime. Digital forensics addresses the following concerns during an IP theft investigation:

Did the criminals copy data onto CDs or USBs?
Was any mass data deleted?
Where was the USB flash drive used?
Did they use a wiping program to cover their crime?
Are there any email communications that indicate a potential IP theft?
Which devices were used to perform file transfers?

Proving IP Theft

To prove an IP theft, you need digital forensics data from social media platforms, mobile apps, and other digital platforms. While the data drawn from these devices may be diverse, it can allow cyber forensics experts to detect the breach’s time, date, and location. By hiring forensic experts to present your case in a court of law, you’ll better understand the significance of digital forensics in identifying IP theft.

If you’re looking for professional digital forensics consultants in Florida, we can help! At Eclipse Forensics, we handle audio, video, and court-certified forensics at affordable rates. Contact us today to avail our services.

Options for Dealing with the Digital Forensics Backlog

Posted on July 10, 2022July 5, 2022 by EclipseForensics

Prosecutors and law enforcement agencies often face a daunting 10-20 month backlog due to a lack of personnel, resources, and storage. This pushes the digital evidence process back significantly. Sadly, the exponential growth of digital evidence and public budgets further delay the process, causing the backlog to last for a long time.

Is outsourcing digital forensic services the best option? Learn more about it through this blog:

1. Don’t Accept the Backlog.

You may accept that digital evidence processes will take several months to give you some actionable intelligence from a device seized at a crime scene. Unfortunately, doing nothing and waiting for the state labs to end the backlog will cost you more money in the long run. Furthermore, you’ll need more investigative resources and surveillance over time while waiting for the state crime labs to process the cell phone evidence. In this context, accepting the time taken to process digital evidence will only cost your firm several dollars and business opportunities.

2. In-house Digital Forensic Lab

While building your own in-house forensic lab may seem tempting, you must have enough time, money, and knowledge to process digital evidence accurately. Building a new lab isn’t the only thing needed to complete all the pending processes. You must also consult professional forensics engineers and data forensic experts to process the large amounts of digital evidence available in the form of voice recorders, cameras, flash drives, mobile phones, GPS devices, hard drives, and more. Thus, consider this option only if you’re certain you’ve gained a good understanding of the digital evidence processes.

3. Outsource Digital Forensic Services

Outsourcing cyber forensic services is an effective and quick way to address your backlog, especially for time-sensitive and complex cases. Fortunately, various cyber forensic experts willing to outsource their services to companies that need them. Professional digital forensic services have the right expertise and knowledge to deal with law enforcement and cross-examination in a court of law.

While many digital forensic engineers available, not all offer the same level of expertise and services as Eclipse Forensics. We are reliable court-certified forensics based in Florida that can help you address your backlog effectively. Contact us now for more details.

Top 3 Mistakes Made On Scene with Digital Evidence

Posted on July 5, 2022July 5, 2022 by EclipseForensics

Digital devices have become so omnipresent that almost all crime scenes include at least one or more forms of digital evidence. While a proper digital forensics examination using these devices can solve a crime, it’s often the actions and decisions taken during evidence collection that determine whether the investigation would succeed or not.

Here are some of the biggest mistakes made with digital evidence on a crime scene:

1. Not Isolating the Digital Device from Networks

Securing a device at a crime scene helps cyber forensics experts analyze and investigate its data. However, if they fail to isolate the device from a wireless or a cellular network, the evidence it contains could be at risk.

A mobile that connects to a wireless or cellular network will continue to sync documents, emails, photos, and contacts with cloud-based services, destroying or corrupting digital evidence as a result. This enables the device’s owner to lock or wipe the digital evidence from the device remotely. Therefore, digital forensic experts must isolate mobile phones and laptops from Bluetooth, cellular, or wireless connectivity to examine them forensically.

2. Powering on the PC

This is another grave mistake that most investigators make at the crime scene. Upon seizing a computer, you must not give in to the temptation of switching it on in search of evidence. That’s because once you log into a computer, it will check for software updates, run a virus check, connect to a network, and resume its background processes. Once the computer is connected to the Internet, the information it contains might be modified or deleted remotely.

Professional forensic engineers have the right equipment to analyze digital evidence without turning on the computer. Therefore, businesses must always hire experts to acquire and restore data.

3. Not Labeling Digital Evidence

Amateur investigators often fail to identify and label the various forms of digital evidence. While a desktop computer might seem like a single device, expert digital forensics services will identify and label every single component of the device that stores data as digital evidence.

Contact Eclipse Forensics in Florida if you’re looking for professional and reliable digital forensics experts. Our team is highly-skilled and knowledgeable in processing, examining, and presenting digital evidence in a court of law. Call us today for more details.

Reasons Why You Need a Digital Forensic Examiner

Posted on June 26, 2022June 14, 2022 by EclipseForensics

In the digital age, it’s important to know how to properly handle electronic evidence. Many crimes and legal cases are solved with the help of a forensic examiner, who is an expert in computer forensics and data recovery. If you’re not familiar with this term, here are some of the reasons why you need a digital forensic examiner.

Lost or Stolen Devices

If your phone or computer was lost or stolen, this could be used as evidence against you if you’re suspected of committing a crime. Your device may contain information about your whereabouts at certain times, as well as other personal information that can be used against you in court. A digital forensic examiner can access the contents of your device and determine what information can be recovered from it. This may include emails, text messages, photos, and videos that show where you were at certain times or with certain people.

Hacking Incidents

Hackers often target large companies and government agencies because they have valuable information stored on their servers and databases that they want to access for financial gain or bragging rights within their hacktivist community. These hackers can also attack individuals by breaking into their online accounts like social media sites and email accounts so they can steal personal data like credit card numbers or bank account passwords which can cause you a lot of loss. By working with a good digital forensic examiner, you will be able to bring such people to justice.

Help Needed to Maintain PR

You want to find out if someone has been posting slanderous comments about you online and want them removed from the internet as soon as possible before they damage your reputation even more than they already have done so far. When a business is in trouble, it’s not uncommon for the owner to call in the professionals to help. Those who are facing legal troubles from their actions need to know that they can rely on a digital forensic examiner to help them out.

Get the Best Digital Forensic Expert

If you’ve been accused of a crime or if you’re planning on taking legal action against someone else, then you need to know what your options are and how to proceed. By working with experienced digital forensics experts, you can bring your case to a fruitful and positive conclusion.

At Eclipse Forensics, our team of cyber forensic experts, audio forensic experts, and video forensic experts guides you throughout the testing period and helps you get the results you deserve.

Get in touch with us for more information.

Using Cellular Records Analysis in Insurance Claims

Posted on June 22, 2022June 14, 2022 by EclipseForensics

Identifying the merit in insurance claims to analyze if the insurer’s coverage request is right or not can be significantly difficult. The experts involved in the case look over all evidence to check if the claim is eligible for a payout. For the trial, all evidence is collected and presented in the court, including cellular records, to analyze the authenticity of the insurer’s claim.

Cellular records remain one of the best types of evidence to get to the bottom of the case. There are no two ways when it comes to the authenticity of the evidence, as it directly comes from the insurer. A forensic expert performs the analysis to help the judge decide if the insurer is speaking the truth or not.

The Importance of Cellular Records Analysis in Insurance Claims

Nowadays, forensic analyses are incomplete without the inspection of the phone data. The cellular records analysis reveals critical information that can turn the case upside down and help give merit to the insurer.

Mobile phones contain personal information in the form of images, texts, location, phone records, and more. In most insurance claims cases, the cellular records analysis helps in clearing the air to make a breakthrough in the case.

This analysis is only focused on the calls received or made through the phone. The experts collect the different cellular data, including the date of the call, time of the call, call duration, IMEI, cell site identity number, and more from the insurer’s phone.

Moreover, the GPS location is collected through cellular records, which helps identify the insurer’s location at the time of the event. The data helps uncover whether the insurer was aware of the damage or if they were true in making a claim.

In short, it won’t be wrong to say that cellular records analysis has sped up the process of identifying the future of insurance claims. With data analysis tools used in forensics, there’s less chance of error, and the authenticity of the results cannot be questioned under normal circumstances.

Need Digital Forensic Services? Call Eclipse Forensics Now

Eclipse Forensics is a team of digital forensic experts in FL. We can help you with cellular records analysis at competitive prices. Whether it’s cell phone searching or video forensic analysis – we can do it all for you.

We have years of experience in helping clients find out the truth with 100% client satisfaction. We are here to assist you in your insurance claim cases to decide the authenticity of the insurer’s claim. Get in touch with us today for more details!