NVR · DVR · CCTV, forensic recovery
CCTV footage recovery, direct from the recorder’s drive.
Surveillance recorders don’t use ordinary filesystems. Hikvision, Dahua, Uniview, Reolink, the Xiongmai family and the many rebadges of them write proprietary formats that standard recovery software cannot read, which is why a scan of the drive so often comes back empty. Reading them is specialist work, and it’s the core of ours.
Why this is a clock, not a queue
A recorder writes in a continuous loop. When the disk is full it starts again at the beginning, overwriting the oldest footage first. It does that automatically, whether or not anyone asked it to. If the recorder is still running, it is consuming the footage you want back right now.
| Situation | What that usually means |
|---|---|
| Deleted, or the recorder was reset | Often recoverable. Deleting from a recorder’s interface typically removes the index entry, not the footage. |
| The recorder failed or won’t boot | Usually recoverable. The footage is on the disk; the machine that reads it is what broke. |
| Recorder still running since the incident | Every hour costs footage. Stop it now, then call. |
| Genuinely overwritten | Gone. No lab can undo an overwrite, and anyone who says otherwise is selling you something. |
Evidence-grade handling
Chain of custody from receipt
Logged, sealed and recorded from the moment the device arrives.
Read-only acquisition
The recorder's disk is imaged; all examination happens on the image.
Hash verification
Acquisition hashes recorded, so exports can be shown to match the source.
Written report
Device, method, what was recovered, where it came from, and the gaps.
Timestamp analysis
Where it matters, whether recorded times are internally consistent.
Authority required
Proof of ownership, or an instructing solicitor's engagement, before anything is touched.
Who engages us
CCTV and security installers
Your client's recorder has failed, or footage they needed is already gone. We work behind you, the client stays yours, and we never approach them about anything but the job you sent.
Solicitors and investigators
Defensible acquisition, chain of custody from receipt, and a written report explaining method and findings in language a court can follow.
Strata and facilities managers
Incident footage from building systems, with authority handled properly before anything is touched.
Loss adjusters and insurers
Independent recovery and examination of footage where a claim turns on what the cameras did or didn't capture.