corruption of hard copy documents. Similar to hard copy information, when digital information changes custody, this should be recorded to prevent breaking the chain of custody and decreasing the evidentiary value of the information. Verification and Authentication Instruments In order to prevent possible corruption of embedded metadata such as location and time, creators of digital information such as photographic or video images can also include real-life markers referring to the location and time in their shots. Landmarks, street signs, watches and other distinguishing factors of the location captured on film can be used to authenticate a piece of digital information and its embedded metadata. 86 To answer to the challenges of verification and authentication of digital information, different developers have designed applications that serve to reliably create digital information on serious human rights violations, such as the Guardian Project’s smartphone application CameraV. 87 CameraV enables creators of digital photographs or videos to embed and encrypt additional pieces of circumstantial information about the creation of that photograph or video. The application will automatically collect and store information such as GPS coordinates, time of creation, type of device used, transmission towers and even Wi-Fi networks in the vicinity of the creator. CameraV then encrypts this data with a key that only the device holds, and allows the user to send all digital information to a secure location of their choosing. This additional metadata is recorded as layers, which can be included or removed from the still or motion picture freely without risk of loss of data. This enables creators of digital information to share their information through a variety of digital media platforms such as YouTube, Facebook or Twitter, without the risk of losing embedded metadata that could be used in court to establish the probative value of the information. CameraV is currently available for download in beta. The International Bar Association, in close cooperation with information firm LexisNexis, also developed a mobile phone app – called IBA eyeWitness to Atrocities – which allows users to safely and securely add metadata to the imagery created. 88 Similar to CameraV, eyeWitness embeds 86 WITNESS, Best Practices: Filming for Human Rights Documentation, Evidence and Media, 1 (2011). For more information on CameraV and the Guardian Project or its partners, visit https://guardianproject.info/apps/camerav/. 88 http://www.eyewitnessproject.org/ 87 71