1.3 From supply chain security to the collection of forensic evidence
b) Forensics Forensic science works off of the physical remnants of past criminal activity, and, therefore has certain native and non-native principles that guide its operation, application, and interpretation. One of the implicit precepts in this view of forensic science is that the production history of mass-produced goods is embedded in the finished product. This production history sets in large part the specificity and resolution of the evidentiary significance of that item. In some cases, certain evidence types are analysed without a concrete focus on the product’s origins or production history, which could be essential to identify critical information. Supply chains can generate numerous variations encountered in most mass-produced items, therefore, the foundation for the potential significance of those items encountered as evidence in forensic investigations and casework.28 In the field of supply chain management, forensic science has been able to identify the particular parameters of any product to determine how or if it can be differentiated from other similar products. A product resulting from the supply chain process can be seen as the culmination of certain contingencies (nodes in the supply chain) and continuities (production methods) intrinsic in its manufacture.29 The techniques used to analyse the goods occasionally overlap with chemistry methods that are employed by the supply chain stakeholders to verify the quality and security standards of the products. In this regard, forensics can be used to analyse a product which has already reached the market to verify if it is counterfeit or not. The comparison of the physical and chemical characteristics of a suspected counterfeit product can determine if the analysed good is, in effect, a counterfeit. This evidence can even be brought in court to support allegations of counterfeiting since it may also serve as a tool for tracing back to the origin of the incident. In addition, it is possible to trace back the composition to its source or compare other counterfeits to verify if they have the same origin.
28
Houck, M. M. (2010). An Investigation into the Foundational Principles of Forensic Science (doctoral dissertation). Curtin University of Technology. Retrieved 2020, from https://espace.curtin.edu.au/bitstream/handle/20.500.11937/1568/146239_Houck%20M%20 2010%20Full.pdf?sequence=2
29 Ibid
17
