ComputerForensicsDigest.com

Two recent incidents -- one humorous, one far less so -- graphically illustrate the ubiquity of video technology these days. Together, these cases serve as a good reminder that video is rapidly becoming what email was ten years ago: the smoking gun in electronic investigations.

Let's begin on a lighter note. Earlier this week, WFLA Newschannel 8 in Tampa, Florida, aired an investigative report that featured video secretly taken by a suspect's surveillance camera during a police drug raid. What made the video so newsworthy was the fact that it captured images of Polk County, Florida police officers using the suspect's Wii to play a bowling game on his large-screen TV, complete with hip swivels, body English, and celebratory jumping.

Defense attorneys in the area suggest that the unauthorized recreational activity may invalidate the search, but Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd rejects that argument. While he concedes that the video is embarrassing and the bowling unprofessional, he told Newschannel 8 that the search itself was conducted legally.

One lingering question is how the surveillance camera was able to make the video in the first place. The camera was hidden in a computer speaker attached to the suspect's desktop. Despite seizing nearly 100 other pieces of evidence, however, the officers never touched the computer. Not exactly textbook procedure.

Now on to a more painful example. In the early days of September, headlines in New York blared the news that Danmell Ndonye, a freshman at Hoffstra University, had been gang-raped by five men during a mixer at Alpha Kappa Alpha on-campus club.

Police quickly arrested four men and accused them of sexually assaulting Ndonye. They were held in prison on $500,000 bail while a manhunt for the fifth alleged attacker was quickly launched.

 A relative of one of the jailed men told police, however, that the missing man had used his cellphone to videotape the incident. Before seeing the actual video, police questioned Ndonye about whether it would support her story. She broke down and confessed that it would not and that the sex that took place was consensual.

The four men were quickly released from jail; at least one is said to be considering a lawsuit against Ndonye. Hofstra University has suspended her until a disciplinary hearing can be held, and Nassau District Attorney Kathleen Rice is reportedly considering charges for filing a false report.