Digital Investigation Services

MATT BLACKBAND

Head of Consultancy

Matt is an accredited digital forensic practitioner with  over 37 years of investigative experience, founded on service in UK law  enforcement. Since 2001, he has performed dedicated digital forensic  investigations, with expertise in forensic retrieval, analysis and  management of digital material, email and social media, crypto-currency  investigations, and the design, development and implementation of  digital forensic laboratories.

International Experience
Matt has extensive domestic and international experience  developing and delivering digital forensics training to law enforcement  and private sector participants. He has provided tuition and mentoring  in Pakistan, Morocco, Nigeria, Jordan, Guyana, Jamaica, Lebanon, South  Africa and Qatar, and designed and developed digital forensic  laboratories for Middle East, Asia and European law enforcement.

Court Experience
Matt has been afforded expert witness status at the Royal  Courts of Justice and The Central Criminal Court on multiple occasions.  He was appointed as a Single Joint Expert in a case involving  crypto-currency holdings investigation. He received a High Court Judge's commendation in a high-profile social media investigation, where the judge stated his evidencewas "clear and compelling".

Professional Credentials

Certified Forensic Investigator Professional

Member of the Academy of Experts

Member of the British Computer Society

Certified Security Testing Professional

Association of Certified Fraud Examiners

International Cyber Threat Task Force

Below is a compilation of some of the investigations 4MAT Data Solutions have undertaken for clients

Situation Pilot of display team killed in air accident. Inquiry needed to establish timelines and activity prior to crash.   

What We Did Examined pilot's iPhone to establish state of mind, rest patterns, and activity timeline.   

Outcome Evidence presented to inquiry, contributing to understanding of circumstances.  

Situation Premiership football club suspected employee was accessing secure server to obtain confidential player salary and injury data.   

What We Did Forensic examination of computer media identified unauthorised access, forwarding of data, and advanced hacking techniques used.   

Outcome Evidence confirmed misconduct. Employee dismissed.  

Situation Leading financial institution in Jersey experienced email server compromise with leak of emails during active case hearing.   

What We Did Rapid incident response identified point of access, method of compromise, named suspect, and security gaps.   

Outcome Remediation plan delivered. Security improvements implemented.  

Situation $3M civil case (construction, Greece). Claimant alleged respondent had falsified email evidence presented in court.   What We Did Detailed email forensics and CPR Part 35 expert report proving presented exhibit was false representation of actual email file.   

Outcome Claimant successfully presented evidence of falsification. Won case.  

Situation Defendant indicted for selling unlocked media viewing cards. Prosecution case relied on computer evidence.   

What We Did Examination of  prosecution case identified breach of ACPO Principle 1 (chain of  custody), lack of exhibit continuity, and technical impossibility of  alleged software use.   

Outcome Split jury forced retrial. Case weakened significantly.  

Situation High-profile  Ministry of Defence war crimes inquiry with 3,000+ digital exhibits  requiring preservation, processing, and review platform access.   

What We Did Strategic and tactical advice. Technical lead for server room expansion. Forensic processing and review platform setup.   

Outcome Investigators able to access and interrogate all exhibits. Inquiry progressed efficiently.