Metadata describes the data behind the data. It can be hugely beneficial to legal professionals to paint a digital timeline of events.
When proving the credibility of digital evidence, metadata can be crucial. Knowing what it is and its uses in court can be the difference between winning or losing a case.
In litigation, metadata is evidence that describes the characteristics, origins, usage and validity of electronic evidence. Metadata attaches to electronically stored information (ESI), making it useful for legal professionals to figure out the who, what, when and where of files.
Critical information revealed by metadata can consist of author identity, file date creation and previous access to the file. You can use this digital footprint to see who’s been responsible for the creation or modification of ESI. Therefore, metadata can be relied upon to prove the credibility of evidence, strengthening your case in the process.