Skip to content

Custodian

Definition

In e-discovery, a person who possesses, controls, or has responsibility for documents or electronic records relevant to an investigation. Identifying custodians is the first step in scoping a document collection.

Related terms

Chain of Custody
The documented chronological record of who collected, handled, transferred, and examined a piece of evidence. For digital evidence, chain of custody includes...
ERP System
Enterprise Resource Planning software (SAP, Oracle, Microsoft Dynamics, and similar platforms) that manages financial and operational records. ERP databases are often the...
Forensic Image
A bit-for-bit verified copy of a storage medium, created using a write-blocker to prevent modification of the original. The copy is verified...
Hash Value
A fixed-length digital fingerprint produced by running a file through a cryptographic algorithm such as SHA-256 or MD5. Identical files produce identical...
Write Blocker
A hardware or software device interposed between a digital storage medium and the forensic workstation that prevents any write commands from reaching...

Explained in

  • Evidence Collection and Chain of CustodyIn e-discovery, a person who possesses, controls, or has responsibility for documents or electronic records relevant to an investigation. Identifying custodian...

Your journey to becoming a forensic professional starts here.

Practice with mock tests, learn from structured notes, and get your questions answered by a global forensic community, all in one place.