[Ssc-dev] Press Request about InformaCam

[Harlo Holmes]

Yeah, replace my #2 with what Nathan says.  I hate answering those
questions...

 And yes, for #1, you can send it off via email (or better yet,
PGP-encrypted email) to someone and still maintain your data.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Research Fellow, Head of Metadata
The Guardian Project <https://guardianproject.info>

pgp: 0xA4469630
twitter: @harlo


On Tue, Jan 29, 2013 at 12:32 PM, Nathan of Guardian <
nathan at guardianproject.info> wrote:

>
> A few addition/mods inline - Sam/Bryan, please take a look, to make sure
> we aren't straying too far from or missing any major points.
>
>
>
> On 01/30/2013 12:16 AM, Harlo Holmes wrote:
>
>
> On Tue, Jan 29, 2013 at 10:43 AM, Nathan of Guardian <
> nathan at guardianproject.info> wrote:
>
>> 1. Does the recipient of the photo or video file also need the app or are there other ways to process the data?
>>
>>
>>
>>
>  An InformaCam user is supposed to submit their media to a remote server,
> which process the photo or video.  The user can always choose to export
> their photo once it's been taken, and it can be looked at on the web,
> shared over twitter, or posted to a blog. However, exporting "breaks the
> seal" so to speak, and the data can no longer necessarily be trusted.
>
>
> Hmm. Is this true though? Couldn't someone decrypt/parse/verify the
> metadata in the image, as long as they had the spec for J3M and the
> InformaCam embed info? I can send a signed/encrypted OpenPGP email through
> an insecure system w/o corrupting the email itself, right?
>
> I think it is okay to say that from a legal perspective, we wan't to keep
> it in a closed system, but that from a format perspective, we want to have
> an open, non-proprietary format that many tools can support.
>
>
>
>
>> 2. How do you make sure that the files are not manipulated via hacking the app or so?
>>
>>
>>
>>  We are carefully and continuously auditing our code so as to minimize
> ways the app can be hacked.  We are an open source project, and encourage
> members of our community to help make our code more robust.  We are also
> aware of "the analog hole" in digital media, which never fails to poke
> holes in even the most foil-proof systems of security.
>
>
> I would perhaps say something like this:
>
> With InformaCam we are working to meet a standard of evidence that is held
> by international criminal courts. Through our partnership with the Int'l
> Bar Association, we are trying to understand what it takes for an app to
> provide enough checks and metadata to verify media "beyond a reasonable
> doubt", so to speak. We also think that in some cases, the app and mobile
> device itself could become part of the verified evidence, much like a gun
> being matched to a bullet.
>
>
>
>
>> 3. Is there a way to verify user-generated content that was not shot or edited using InformaCam?
>>
>>
>  Forensic analysts specializing in digital media have plenty of methods
> of verifying photos and videos; we employ some of those methods when
> processing media submitted from the app to the servers.  However, one of
> InformaCam's key concepts is establishing an auditable chain-of-custody to
> lend weight to the "trustworthyness" of the media.  This is something that
> cannot be done with forensics alone.
>
>
> I would add this:
>
> This is not to minimize the potential of combining InformaCam with social
> or crowd-source verification, as we have seen Andy Carvin at NPR do, or
> what the team of editors at Storyful.com do. From a news journalism
> perspective, being able to reach out and cross-verify a photo or video from
> multiple independent eyewitness sources, could still be faster and more
> effective that sorting through data and code. Ultimately, we see our work
> with InformaCam providing more data points to both journalistic and legal
> verification process, not replacing them.
>
>
>
>
>
>> 4. Will the app stay limited to Android devices? Will it be available via the official channels (Google Play, AppStore etc.)? When will the pilot version be available?
>>
>>  We are piloting the app with partner organizations instead of releasing
> to the general public just yet.
>
> , however, the source code is completely open-source, and available for
> any interested users or groups to join in the development and testing
> process. Ultimately, we do feel InformaCam can be relevant to activities
> beyond global crisis, be it documenting an insurance claim, or gathering
> rich metadata for historic or personal archiving reasons.
>
>
>   We do think about developing a version for iOS, but Android is better
> suited to this project for so many reasons: world-wide reach, licensing,
> and most importantly, hardware.  As we've recently seen with the release of
> the Nikon Coolpix and Samsung Galaxy cameras, Android is becoming better
> integrated with better pro-sumer hardware; it's exciting to see where this
> is leading.
>
>   +n
>
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