Welcome back, to digital forensic concepts. In this course, we are talking about reporting in peer review. In this module, Module 3, we're going to talk about the definition and the importance of peer review. Peer review is defined by SWEDG, the scientific working group as, an evaluation conducted by a second qualified examiner, of reports, notes, data, conclusions, and other documents. Peer review ensures the reliability and validity of findings and conclusions. Peer review is when another qualified examiner, looks at the results of your forensic examination, and decides whether they think it is valid, that it makes sense, that it's reproducible, and that it is correct. They may give you back some suggestions, constructive criticism, but it's a way of learning. Peer review has been proven, to increase the reliability and accuracy of reports. Next slide. Most of us will have peer review in our labs. If we're working in a lab-based environment, this is the primary area where peer review happens, and that's when you have another examiner in your lab, look at your report and your findings. It is known to reduce errors. It should be part of every examination. It is extremely important, because you want to find the mistakes before you turn in your final report, your presentation, or whoever is going to be looking at your work. Whether it's your boss, if you're doing it for a clients, if you're turning it into a lawyer's office, you really want to have some type of peer review, to have that report and those findings looked at, by another qualified examiner before you turn them over. Benefits of peer review. Well, it helps give us some scientific credential, because after all this is a scientific process. In the case, Daubert versus Merrell Dow Pharmaceuticals, peer review, was one of the tests for admissibility of evidence. Peer review is also one of the best ways to overcome and prevent potential errors in our reports, like I said before. But there wasn't admissibility tests for evidence, set forth in a case and that's, Daubert versus Merrell Dow Pharmaceuticals, where peer review was actually part of that test, to consider whether evidence would or would not be admissible. That's how important peer review is. I just want to really stress that. It's also one of the best ways to overcome and prevent potential biases in our report. We all are human beings and we do have our own biases. If you have another objective, professional look at your report and your findings, they can do it from a way that might not be clouded with certain biases, that you may or may not have. But it does help prevent these biases from becoming part of our report. It does offer a way to improve the quality of future work. Like I said before, constructive criticism, we can learn to improve, when we have another professional look at our reports and give us feedback. I hope you now understand what peer review is and why it's important.
