EN ISO 21043-2:2020

Forensic sciences - Part 2: Recognition, recording, collecting, transport and storage of items (ISO 21043-2:2018)

This document specifies requirements for the forensic process focusing on recognition, recording, collection, transport and storage of items of potential forensic value. It includes requirements for the assessment and examination of scenes but is also applicable to activities that occur within the facility. This document also includes quality requirements.
This document is not applicable to procedures for the recovery of data from digital storage media which is covered by ISO/IEC 27037. However, the storage medium itself can yield additional items of forensic value (e.g. fingerprints or DNA).
Annex D shows the applicability of this document to the forensic process.

Forensik - Teil 2: Spurensuche, Dokumentation, Sicherung, Transport und Lagerung von Asservaten (ISO 21043-2:2018)

Dieses Dokument legt Anforderungen für die Spurensuche, die Dokumentation, die Spurensicherung, den Transport und die Lagerung von Asservaten fest, die möglicherweise von kriminaltechnischer Bedeutung sein können. Es schließt Anforderungen für die Bewertung und Untersuchung von Tatorten ein, gilt aber auch für Aktivitäten in kriminaltechnischen Einrichtungen. Dieses Dokument schließt auch Qualitätsanforderungen ein.
Dieses Dokument gilt nicht für Verfahren zur Datenwiederherstellung von digitalen Speichermedien, die durch ISO/IEC 27037 abgedeckt werden. Jedoch kann das Speichermedium selbst Träger weiterer Objekte von kriminaltechnischem Wert sein (z. B. Fingerabdrücke oder DNA).
Anhang D zeigt die Anwendbarkeit dieses Dokuments auf den kriminaltechnischen Prozess.

Criminalistique - Partie 2: Reconnaissance, enregistrement, collecte, transport et stockage des traces et autres éléments d'intérêt (ISO 21043-2:2018)

Forenzične znanosti - 2. del: Prepoznavanje, snemanje, zbiranje, prevoz in shranjevanje predmetov (ISO 21043-2:2018)

General Information

• Status: Published
• Publication Date: 17-Mar-2020
• Withdrawal Date: 29-Sep-2020
• ICS: 07.140 - Forensic science
• Technical Committee: CEN/TC 419 - Project Committee - Forensic science services
• Drafting Committee: CEN/TC 419 - Project Committee - Forensic science services
• Current Stage: 6060 - Definitive text made available (DAV) - Publishing
• Start Date: 18-Mar-2020
• Due Date: 22-Dec-2021
• Completion Date: 18-Mar-2020
• Ref Project: SIST EN ISO 21043-2:2020 - Forensic sciences - Part 2: Recognition, recording, collecting, transport and storage of items (ISO 21043-2:2018)

Overview

EN ISO 21043-2:2020 (ISO 21043-2:2018) is a European adoption of an ISO standard that defines requirements for the forensic process related to the recognition, recording, collecting, transport and storage of items of potential forensic value. The document covers scene assessment and examination activities both in the field and inside facilities, and includes quality requirements to safeguard evidence integrity throughout the forensic workflow. It explicitly excludes procedures for data recovery from digital storage media (see ISO/IEC 27037), while noting that storage media can still yield physical evidence (e.g., fingerprints, DNA).

Key topics and technical requirements

The standard sets out requirements and expectations rather than step‑by‑step procedures. Major technical topics include:

• Recognition and assessment of scenes - criteria to identify items of potential forensic value and to plan examinations.
• Recording and documentation - consistent recording practices, scene notes, and reporting to support reproducibility and court presentation.
• Collection and packaging - methods to collect, package and label items to prevent loss, contamination or degradation.
• Transport and storage - secure transport chains and storage conditions to protect items and maintain evidential value.
• Item handling and control - chain of custody, traceability, and control of evidence movement.
• Quality management - documented policies, SOPs, record control, monitoring, corrective action, peer review and staff competence.
• Personnel, equipment and facilities - competence requirements, appropriate consumables, PPE and facility controls.
• Detection, screening and enhancement techniques - general requirements and controls for techniques used to detect and enhance traces.
• Health, safety and contamination minimization - included in informative annexes to reduce risks to personnel and evidence.

Practical applications

EN ISO 21043-2 is used to:

• Standardize crime scene operations and forensic workflows.
• Improve evidence integrity for laboratory analysis and court use.
• Establish organizational quality systems for forensic units.
• Guide packaging, labelling, transport and storage policies for chain‑of‑custody preservation.
• Inform training and competence assessment for first responders and forensic staff.

Who should use this standard

• Crime scene investigators and first responders
• Forensic laboratory managers and technicians
• Police evidence officers and transport/logistics teams
• Quality managers and accreditation bodies in forensic services
• Legal professionals who need to understand evidence handling standards

Related standards

• ISO 21043-1 - terms and definitions used across the ISO 21043 series.
• ISO/IEC 27037 - guidance on identification, collection and preservation of digital evidence (data recovery procedures are excluded from ISO 21043-2).

Keywords: EN ISO 21043-2:2020, forensic sciences standard, evidence handling, chain of custody, scene examination, evidence transport and storage, forensic quality requirements.

Standards Content (Sample)

SLOVENSKI STANDARD
01-junij-2020
Forenzične znanosti - 2. del: Prepoznavanje, snemanje, zbiranje, prevoz in
shranjevanje predmetov (ISO 21043-2:2018)
Forensic sciences - Part 2: Recognition, recording, collecting, transport and storage of
items (ISO 21043-2:2018)
Forensik - Teil 2: Spurensuche, Dokumentation, Sicherung, Transport und Lagerung von
Asservaten (ISO 21043-2:2018)
Criminalistique - Partie 2: Reconnaissance, enregistrement, collecte, transport et
stockage des traces et autres éléments d'intérêt (ISO 21043-2:2018)
Ta slovenski standard je istoveten z: EN ISO 21043-2:2020
ICS:
07.140 Forenzika Forensic science
2003-01.Slovenski inštitut za standardizacijo. Razmnoževanje celote ali delov tega standarda ni dovoljeno.

EN ISO 21043-2
EUROPEAN STANDARD
NORME EUROPÉENNE
March 2020
EUROPÄISCHE NORM
ICS 07.140
English Version
Forensic sciences - Part 2: Recognition, recording,
collecting, transport and storage of items (ISO 21043-
2:2018)
Criminalistique - Partie 2: Reconnaissance, Forensik - Teil 2: Spurensuche, Dokumentation,
enregistrement, collecte, transport et stockage des Sicherung, Transport und Lagerung von Asservaten
traces et autres éléments d'intérêt (ISO 21043-2:2018) (ISO 21043-2:2018)
This European Standard was approved by CEN on 2 March 2020.

CEN members are bound to comply with the CEN/CENELEC Internal Regulations which stipulate the conditions for giving this
European Standard the status of a national standard without any alteration. Up-to-date lists and bibliographical references
concerning such national standards may be obtained on application to the CEN-CENELEC Management Centre or to any CEN
member.
This European Standard exists in three official versions (English, French, German). A version in any other language made by
translation under the responsibility of a CEN member into its own language and notified to the CEN-CENELEC Management
Centre has the same status as the official versions.

CEN members are the national standards bodies of Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia,
Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway,
Poland, Portugal, Republic of North Macedonia, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey and
United Kingdom.
EUROPEAN COMMITTEE FOR STANDARDIZATION
COMITÉ EUROPÉEN DE NORMALISATION

EUROPÄISCHES KOMITEE FÜR NORMUNG

CEN-CENELEC Management Centre: Rue de la Science 23, B-1040 Brussels
© 2020 CEN All rights of exploitation in any form and by any means reserved Ref. No. EN ISO 21043-2:2020 E
worldwide for CEN national Members.

Contents Page
European foreword . 3

European foreword
The text of ISO 21043-2:2018 has been prepared by Technical Committee ISO/TC 272 "Forensic
sciences” of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and has been taken over as
of which is held by NEN.
This European Standard shall be given the status of a national standard, either by publication of an
identical text or by endorsement, at the latest by September 2020, and conflicting national standards
shall be withdrawn at the latest by September 2020.
Attention is drawn to the possibility that some of the elements of this document may be the subject of
patent rights. CEN shall not be held responsible for identifying any or all such patent rights.
According to the CEN-CENELEC Internal Regulations, the national standards organizations of the
following countries are bound to implement this European Standard: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria,
Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland,
Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Republic of
North Macedonia, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey and the
United Kingdom.
Endorsement notice
The text of ISO 21043-2:2018 has been approved by CEN as EN ISO 21043-2:2020 without any
modification.
INTERNATIONAL ISO
STANDARD 21043-2
First edition
2018-08
Forensic sciences —
Part 2:
Recognition, recording, collecting,
transport and storage of items
Criminalistique —
Partie 2: Reconnaissance, enregistrement, collecte, transport
et stockage des traces et autres éléments d'intérêt
Reference number
ISO 21043-2:2018(E)
©
ISO 2018
ISO 21043-2:2018(E)
© ISO 2018
All rights reserved. Unless otherwise specified, or required in the context of its implementation, no part of this publication may
be reproduced or utilized otherwise in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, or posting
on the internet or an intranet, without prior written permission. Permission can be requested from either ISO at the address
below or ISO’s member body in the country of the requester.
ISO copyright office
CP 401 • Ch. de Blandonnet 8
CH-1214 Vernier, Geneva
Phone: [phone]
Fax: [phone]
Email: [e-mail]
Website: www.iso.org
Published in Switzerland
ii © ISO 2018 – All rights reserved

ISO 21043-2:2018(E)
Contents Page
Foreword .iv
Introduction .v
1 Scope . 1
2 Normative references . 1
3 Terms and definitions . 1
4 Abbreviations. 1
5 General requirements . 1
5.1 Quality . 1
5.2 Requests for service . 2
5.3 Impartiality and confidentiality . 2
5.4 Health and safety . 2
5.5 Personnel . 2
5.6 Equipment and consumables . 3
5.7 Detection, screening and enhancement techniques . 3
5.8 Facilities . 3
6 Initial response at scenes . 4
6.1 First response . 4
6.2 Forensic response . 4
7 Forensic examination . 4
7.1 General . 4
7.2 Assessing a scene . 5
7.3 Examination strategy . . 5
7.4 Review and final closure of a scene . 5
8 Recording . 5
9 Item handling and control . 6
9.1 General . 6
9.2 Collecting . 6
9.3 Packaging . 6
9.4 Labelling . 7
9.5 Item transport and storage. 7
10 Reporting . 7
Annex A (informative) Health and safety considerations . 9
Annex B (informative) Contamination minimization .10
Annex C (informative) First responder actions .11
Annex D (informative) Applicability of ISO 21043-2 to the forensic process .12
Bibliography .13
ISO 21043-2:2018(E)
Foreword
ISO (the International Organization for Standardization) is a worldwide federation of national standards
bodies (ISO member bodies). The work of preparing International Standards is normally carried out
through ISO technical committees. Each member body interested in a subject for which a technical
committee has been established has the right to be represented on that committee. International
organizations, governmental and non-governmental, in liaison with ISO, also take part in the work.
ISO collaborates closely with the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) on all matters of
electrotechnical standardization.
The procedures used to develop this document and those intended for its further maintenance are
described in the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 1. In particular the different approval criteria needed for the
different types of ISO documents should be noted. This document was drafted in accordance with the
editorial rules of the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 2 (see www .iso .org/directives).
Attention is drawn to the possibility that some of the elements of this document may be the subject of
patent rights. ISO shall not be held responsible for identifying any or all such patent rights. Details of
any patent rights identified during the development of the document will be in the Introduction and/or
on the ISO list of patent declarations received (see www .iso .org/patents).
Any trade name used in this document is information given for the convenience of users and does not
constitute an endorsement.
For an explanation on the voluntary nature of standards, the meaning of ISO specific terms and
expressions related to conformity assessment, as well as information about ISO's adherence to the
World Trade Organization (WTO) principles in the Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT) see the following
URL: www .iso .org/iso/foreword .html.
This document was prepared by Technical Committee ISO/TC 272, Forensic sciences.
A list of all parts of the ISO 21043 series can be found on the ISO website.
iv © ISO 2018 – All rights reserved

ISO 21043-2:2018(E)
Introduction
This document is part of a series which, when completed, will include the different components of
the forensic process from scene to courtroom. This document establishes requirements designed to
safeguard the reliability of results produced by the forensic process. It includes measures to protect
items during the process of recognition, recording, collecting, transport and storage, which apply
throughout the forensic process, both in the field and in the facility. The requirements are designed to
protect items from loss, degradation, contamination and to minimize the negative impact of handling
or packaging on downstream process.
Annexes A, B and C are for information only.
The notes given provide clarification of the text, examples and guidance. They do not contain
requirements and do not form an integral part of this document.
INTERNATIONAL STANDARD ISO 21043-2:2018(E)
Forensic sciences —
Part 2:
Recognition, recording, collecting, transport and storage
of items
1 Scope
This document specifies requirements for the forensic process focusing on recognition, recording,
collection, transport and storage of items of potential forensic value. It includes requirements for the
assessment and examination of scenes but is also applicable to activities that occur within the facility.
This document also includes quality requirements.
This document is not applicable to procedures for the recovery of data from digital storage media which
is covered by ISO/IEC 27037. However, the storage medium itself can yield additional items of forensic
value (e.g. fingerprints or DNA).
Annex D shows the applicability of this document to the forensic process.
2 Normative references
The following documents are referred to in the text in such a way that some or all of their content
constitutes requirements of this document. For dated references, only the edition cited applies. For
undated references, the latest edition of the referenced document (including any amendments) applies.
ISO 21043-1, Forensic sciences — Terms and definitions
3 Terms and definitions
For the purposes of this document, the terms and definitions given in ISO 21043-1 apply.
ISO and IEC maintain terminological databases for use in standardization at the following addresses:
— ISO Online browsing platform: available at https: //www .iso .org/obp
— IEC Electropedia: available at http: //www .electropedia .org/
4 Abbreviations
DNA Deoxyribonucleic acid
PPE Personal Protective Equipment
5 General requirements
5.1 Quality
Policies and/or procedures shall be documented and include:
a) document control;
ISO 21043-2:2018(E)
b) education and training requirements for personnel to ensure competence (see also 5.5);
c) how corrective action is undertaken, recorded and reviewed;
d) monitoring and recording conformance with policies and procedures;
e) quality checks including peer review;
f) record control;
g) responsibility, authority and role of personnel;
h) standard operating procedures;
i) use of external service providers.
Policies and procedures within the scope of this document shall be readily accessible to relevant
personnel, who shall be familiar with and operate within these requirements.
5.2 Requests for service
Customer requests shall be recorded and considered when developing the forensic examination
strategy.
NOTE The customer requests and the scope of assignments are not always clear before the forensic
examination has been started.
The customer should be informed and/or consulted on significant changes to the requested examination.
5.3 Impartiality and confidentiality
Policies regarding impartiality and confidentiality within the organization, its personnel and all
activities shall be documented.
Information obtained should not influence the impartiality of the forensic process. Any information
...