Forensic system, forensic method, and forensic program

• US 8,793,277 B2
• Filed: 03/24/2011
• Issued: 07/29/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 03/29/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Fronteo, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Ubic, Inc.
• Inventors: Morimoto, Masahiro, Shirai, Yoshikatsu, Takeda, Hideki
• Primary Examiner(s): Peach, Polina
• Application Number:
  US13/514,295
• Publication Number:
  US 20120239666A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,223 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 707/780
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/93 Document management systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/18 Legal services

Abstract

Embodiments of the inventive concept can extract digital document information related with a specific individual to achieve a work load reduction associated with evidentiary material preparation for litigation. Recorded digital information can be displayed and user-specifying information can be set for each of a plurality of document files. The user-specifying information shows which user contained in user information one or more document files is related with. A recording unit can record the set user-specifying information. At least one user is selected, and a document file where user-specifying information which corresponds to the selected user was set is searched. Additional information showing whether or not the searched document file is related with the litigation is set via a display unit. A document file which is related with litigation is outputted based on the additional information.

Claims

1. A forensic system configured to acquire digital information recorded on a plurality of computers or a server to analyze the acquired digital information, the forensic system comprising:

a digital information acquiring unit configured to acquire digital information containing digital document information composed of a plurality of document files, and to acquire user information about users using the plurality of computers or the server;

a recording unit configured to record therein the digital information acquired by the digital information acquiring unit;

a display unit configured to display the recorded digital information;

a user-specifying information setting unit configured to set user-specifying information showing which one of users contained in the user-specifying information each of the plurality of document files is related with, to set ranking information showing a first relative degree of relationship a first user from among the users has with litigation, and showing a second relative degree of relationship a second user from among the users has with the litigation, and configured to cause the recording unit to record the set user-specifying information, via the display unit;

a user selecting unit configured to select at least one user via the display unit;

a control unit, comprising;

a searching unit configured to search a document file where the user-specifying information corresponding to the selected user was set, and to provide a book-mark function allowing book-mark search for material set with a hierarchy structure book-mark;

a highlight display function configured to highlight, on the display unit, a searched word or phrase;

a managing unit including an access right control function configured to set one or more rights for each of a plurality of accounts associated with a browser, wherein the one or more rights set by the managing unit includes a manager right associated with the browser;

a statistical data producing unit configured to produce statistical data represented by data size for each data format of the acquired digital document information or statistical data represented by data size for each data format of the digital document information;

a digital document extracting unit configured to select a kind of file to be searched;

a data converting unit configured to preserve a selected file as a separate file;

an additional information setting unit configured to set additional information showing whether or not the searched document file is related with the litigation, wherein the additional information includes at least one of a first tag indicating that the searched document file is related with the litigation, a second tag indicating that the searched document file is potentially related with the litigation, and a third tag indicating that the searched document file is not related with the litigation; and

an output unit configured to output the document file which is related with the litigation, based on the first relative degree of relationship the first user from among the users has with the litigation, the second relative degree of relationship the second user from among the users has with the litigation, and the at least one of the first tag indicating that the searched document file is related with the litigation, the second tag indicating that the searched document file is potentially related with the litigation, and the third tag indicating that the searched document file is not related with the litigation.

2. The forensic system according to claim 1, wherein the user-specifying information setting unit is configured to set, to the document file, user-specifying information showing that a plurality of users are related with the document file.

3. The forensic system according to claim 2, wherein the user-specifying information setting unit is configured to set a relationship between the plurality of users and the document file, to the user-specifying information.

4. The forensic system according to claim 3, wherein

the user selecting unit is further configured to select a rank order of the ranking information;

and

the searching unit is configured to search the document file where user-specifying information corresponding to a user having the selected rank order was set, wherein the searching unit is configured to search the document file in which the first relative degree of relationship the first user has with the litigation has a predefined relationship to the second relative degree of relationship the second user has with the litigation.

5. The forensic system according to claim 1, wherein

the digital information acquiring unit is configured to acquire second digital information containing second digital document information and second user information, the second digital information being recorded in a second server different from the server;

and

the forensic system is configured to search not only the digital document information but also a plurality of document files including the second digital document information.

6. The forensic system according to claim 1, further comprising:

a text information extracting unit configured to extract text information for each of the plurality of document files from the recorded digital document information; and

a keyword selecting unit configured to select a keyword, wherein

the searching unit is configured to search the document file including the selected keyword, based on the extracted text information; and

the additional information setting unit is configured to set additional information to the searched document file.

7. The forensic system according to claim 1, wherein:

the data converting unit is configured to convert the document file in the digital document information recorded by the recording unit to a predetermined data format, and

the document file converted by the data converting unit is processed with the same data format as the converted data format in a period before being outputted by the output unit.

8. The forensic system according to claim 1, further comprising:

a clock unit which, when newly acquiring digital information, is configured to clock a date and time of the acquisition of the digital information, the digital information further including folder information saving the digital document information, wherein

the digital information acquiring unit is configured to acquire the digital document information and the folder information which were produced after the time and date previously clocked by the clock unit, and is configured to acquire user information related with the acquired digital document information.

9. The forensic system according to claim 1, wherein

the forensic system is configured to be simultaneously used by a plurality of operators, and

the additional information setting unit is configured to set additional information by different operators.

10. The forensic system according to claim 1, wherein

the output unit is either one of a printer and a digital document producing device.

13. The forensic system according to claim 1, wherein the one or more rights set by the managing unit includes an access right associated with the browser.

14. The forensic system according to claim 1, wherein the one or more rights set by the managing unit includes a browsing-only right associated with the browser.

17. The system according to claim 4, wherein:

the predefined relationship is characterized by the first relative degree of relationship of the first user having a greater degree of relationship with the litigation than the second relative degree of relationship of the second user, thereby narrowing search results of the searching unit based on the relative degrees of relationship among the users with the litigation.

11. A forensic method which acquires digital information recorded on a plurality of computers or a server to analyze the acquired digital information, comprising:

a step of acquiring digital information containing digital document information composed of a plurality of document files, and user information about user utilizing the plurality of computers or the server;

a step of recording digital information acquired by the digital information acquiring unit;

a step of displaying the recorded digital information;

a step of setting user-specifying information showing which one of users contained in the user information each of the plurality of document files is related with, wherein setting the user-specifying information includes setting ranking information showing a first relative degree of relationship a first user from among the users has with litigation, and showing a second relative degree of relationship a second user from among the users has with the litigation;

a step of setting the recording unit to record the set user-specifying information;

a step of selecting at least one user;

a step of searching a document file where user-specifying information corresponding to the selected user was set;

a step of providing a book-mark function allowing book-mark search for material set with a hierarchy structure book-mark;

a step of highlighting on a display a searched word or phrase;

a step of setting one or more access rights for each of a plurality of accounts associated with a browser, wherein the step of setting the one or more rights includes setting a manager right associated with the browser;

a step of producing statistical data represented by data size for each data format of the acquired digital document information or statistical data represented by data size for each data format of the digital document information;

a step of selecting a kind of file to be searched;

a step of preserving a selected file as a separate file;

a step of setting additional information showing whether or not the searched document file is related with the litigation, wherein the additional information includes at least one of a first tag indicating that the searched document file is related with the litigation, a second tag indicating that the searched document file is potentially related with the litigation, and a third tag indicating that the searched document file is not related with the litigation; and

a step of outputting a document file related with the litigation based upon the first relative degree of relationship the first user from among the users has with the litigation, the second relative degree of relationship the second user from among the users has with the litigation, and the at least one of the first tag indicating that the searched document file is related with the litigation, the second tag indicating that the searched document file is potentially related with the litigation, and the third tag indicating that the searched document file is not related with the litigation.

15. The method according to claim 11, wherein the step of setting the one or more rights includes setting an access right associated with the browser.

16. The method according to claim 11, wherein the step of setting the one or more rights includes setting a browsing-only right associated with the browser.

12. A non-transitory recording medium recording therein a forensic program which acquires digital information recorded on a plurality of computers or a server to analyze the acquired digital information, the forensic program causing a computer to execute:

a function of acquiring digital information containing digital document information composed of a plurality of document files, and user information about users using the plurality of computers or the server;

a function of recording digital information acquired by the digital information acquiring unit;

a function of displaying the recorded digital information;

a function of setting user-specifying information showing which one of users contained in the user information each of the plurality of document files is related with, wherein setting the user-specifying information includes setting ranking information showing a first relative degree of relationship a first user from among the users has with litigation, and showing a second relative degree of relationship a second user from among the users has with the litigation;

a function of causing the recording unit to record the set user-specifying information;

a function of selecting at least one user;

a function of searching a document file where user-specifying information corresponding to the selected user was set;

a function of providing a book-mark function allowing book-mark search for material set with a hierarchy structure book-mark

a function of highlighting on a display a searched word or phrase;

a function of setting one or more access rights for each of a plurality of accounts associated with a browser, wherein the function of setting the one or more rights includes setting a manager right associated with the browser;

a function of producing statistical data represented by data size for each data format of the acquired digital document information or statistical data represented by data size for each data format of the digital document information;

a function of selecting a kind of file to be searched;

a function of preserving a selected file as a separate file;

a function of setting additional information showing whether or not the searched document file is related with the litigation, wherein the additional information includes at least one of a first tag indicating that the searched document file is related with the litigation, a second tag indicating that the searched document file is potentially related with the litigation, and a third tag indicating that the searched document file is not related with the litigation; and

a function of outputting the document file related with the litigation based on the first relative degree of relationship the first user from among the users has with the litigation, the second relative degree of relationship the second user from among the users has with the litigation, and the at least one of the first tag indicating that the searched document file is related with the litigation, the second tag indicating that the searched document file is potentially related with the litigation, and the third tag indicating that the searched document file is not related with the litigation.