Forensic communication apparatus and method

An apparatus for recording images for secure transmission to a secure storage facility, comprising:

• a capture device for capturing a image and said capture device is owned and controlled by an owner;
• a local verification device for indelibly marking the captured image with the actual date and time of the capture of the information, and the actual location defining the location of said capture device at the time of capture of the image, such that much date, time and location information becomes an integral part of the captured image as a bound image file;
• a signature device for creating owner information identifying the creator and owner of the bound image file and placing the bound image file in combination with the owner data in a predefined secure transmission file formatted to be uniquely recognized by a secure storage facility;
• an encryption device for encrypting the bound image file with a first level of encryption to provided an encrypted file, which first level of encryption constitutes a symmetrical encryption algorithm that has a secret key available only to the owner and wherein the encrypted file is placed in combination with owner information identifying the creator and owner of the bound image file in a predefined secure transmission file formatted to be uniquely recognized by a secure storage facility, wherein the secure storage facility is operable to store only the encrypted file in association with the owner;
• a transmitter for transmitting the secure transmission file to the secure storage facility, wherein the secure storage facility is operable to store bound captured information in association with the owner;
• and
• the secure facility generating an acknowledgment of the receipt of the transmitted secure transmission file to the secure storage facility, wherein the acknowledgment has associated therewith at least a portion of the information contained within the transmitted secure transmission file.