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How to Authenticate Surveillance Video Time and Date Stamps

Capturing image metadata from the camera to imprint a date and time stamp on your surveillance video requires a few extra steps and third-party software.

Here’s how to do it. 

At least once a month I get an email from aspiring or current private investigators asking how our firm attaches rolling time and date stamp subtitles to our surveillance video. It’s one of those things that should be simple and easy but isn’t, which is why so many people ask the question.

As such, I figured I’d write an article to explain not only how to imprint your surveillance video with time and date stamps but also to outline how to authenticate this crucial data for legal purposes.

Change in Technology

Adding time and date stamps to surveillance video wasn’t always the massive pain in the @** that it is today. What changed was the transition to digital video from analog 8mm video tapes like Hi8 and Video8. This “evolution” exponentially improved the quality of footage, but manufacturers opted to sacrifice the feature that “burned” the time and date stamp directly onto the video file.

It’s interesting to note that home security cameras still offer this “burn” feature for time and date stamps, which makes sense. But losing that capability in newer hand-held cameras forced investigators to find some kind of workaround.

The Workaround

So you’ve purchased an expensive video camera to use for surveillance work. The instructions state that the camera is capable of imprinting a time and date stamp onto the video. You do a test shoot, export the video file, and — to your surprise — there’s no subtitled stamp.

So now you’re good and mad. And understandably so.

There was no error in the instructions. They simply failed to state that the time and date stamp will only be displayed when watching the video in playback mode on the camera itself. A rather vital detail to omit, if you happen to be a surveillance operative.

This vital detail means your client is getting a video file without a time and date stamp — which is not exactly a professional look for you. And that unstamped video is of little use for your client’s legal proceedings.

The only way to display this video with a time and date stamp on this theoretical camera you’ve bought is to connect the camera itself to a monitor using AV cables and play the video right from your camera. Which is, for a ton of reasons, pretty much unworkable.

All hope is not lost. The valuable information you need is contained in the video files’ metadata and can be extracted. You’ll just need to use a third-party program to accomplish this.

Our preferred program is DVMP Pro. The cost varies, starting at $79.99 USD for single-computer access and goes up from there. At the site (link: dvmp.co.uk) you’ll find instructions for purchase and for how to use various features.

Authenticating Your Time and Date Stamps

You’ve now figured out how to add that all-important time and date stamp to your surveillance video, but you’re not ready for the courtroom just yet. The next step is to ensure that your video evidence will stand up in court.

As we know all too well, videos can be manipulated in many ways, including interfering with third-party software and the time and date stamp. Any good attorney will raise this point and try to have the evidence deemed inadmissible. As our firm is based in Canada, we follow the guidelines outlined in the Canadian Evidence Act — specifically sections 31.1, 31.2, and 31.6. These sections address the issue of both the authentication and integrity of electronic documents as they pertain to evidence.

I’ve included the link to the Act and a copy of these sections below. Here’s the gist: all electronic evidence must be confirmed by an affidavit of fact completed by the person who captured the evidence. This means that the surveillance footage-gatherer is also a witness, and must include a statement with the video swearing that the footage is authentic and true.

Canada Evidence Act (justice.gc.ca)

31.1 Any person seeking to admit an electronic document as evidence has the burden of proving its authenticity by evidence capable of supporting a finding that the electronic document is that which it is purported to be.

  • 2000, c. 5, s. 56

31.2 (1)The best evidence rule in respect of an electronic document is satisfied

  • ·(a) on proof of the integrity of the electronic documents system by or in which the electronic document was recorded or stored; or
    • ·(b) if an evidentiary presumption established under section 31.4 applies.

31.6(1) The matters referred to in subsection 31.2(2) and sections 31.3 and 31.5 and in regulations made under section 31.4 may be established by affidavit.

For anyone not familiar with using these affidavits, I recommend using lawdepot.com. You simply input the details, and it churns out the affidavit for you in the correct format. Here’s the link to the affidavit form.

Summary

I hope you’ve found this primer useful! Understanding how to add date and time stamps and authenticate your surveillance video will enhance the integrity of your investigations, underscore your professionalism, and add value to your services. I assure you that should any of your investigations end up in court — as I’m sure many will — your client and their legal team will be grateful for authenticated evidence that withstands legal scrutiny.


About the author:

Rod Thompson is president of Metro Surveillance and Investigations, based in St. John’s, Newfoundland, Canada. Rod is a licensed private investigator and holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Police Studies and a Certificate of Criminology from Memorial University of Newfoundland. You can learn more about Rod and his company by visiting www.metroinvestigations.ca