Today see’s the opening ceremony of the 2012 Olympics kick off at the Olympic Village, and it’s hardly surprising that security has never been such a high priority. Suspected threats of terrorism and opportunities for crime will soar during the next few weeks.

Here at IntaForenics, we’ve been discussing how the Olympic period will affect our team.

Christine Anderson, a Computer Forensic Analyst, says “I’m still undecided on whether or not this will affect the industry. It’s highly likely that crime will be on the increase during this time, and therefore additional police resource is required. However this increase will likely be in the form of anti-social behaviour, which may not involve digital equipment being seized.”

But there’s one aspect of our day-to-day work which will undoubtedly be affected, as Christine mentions “We regularly travel to collect and return exhibits, which includes journeys through London itself. The additional journey times will not only extend our drivers working hours, but may also affect the analysts working hours.”

Les Stokes-Emery, IntaForensics’ security cleared driver, was in London just yesterday. “On the return journey, the Olympic Torch Relay passed by – this caused some delays. I’ve now altered the route into the city to avoid congestion wherever possible”

So while some of our staff are questioning whether the workload will increase, others are certain it will. Karla Poppleton says “Personally, I believe that the threat in cybercrime will increase during this time. Technology has become a part of day to day life, and a lot of everyday processes are now reliant on the use of digital media. Therefore, this is a perfect means of attack for criminals, and could result in more work for digital forensic investigators.

“Here at IntaForensics, I believe we’ll get busier. Police forces will be using all resources possible to maintain a high security state, meaning less people will be available to work on digital forensic cases.” Should additional work be outsourced to private companies, we are fully equipped to support our police force clients in any way that we can.

Either way, there’s a growing anticipation for the games here at IntaForensics as we all look forward to London 2012.