SuspectED: A Global Tool for Biological Threat Detection
-
Four-step 'See, Record, Collect, Report' workflow
-
Works offline in remote, high-risk environments
-
Maintains forensic-grade chain of custody
The Brief
Turning smartphones into forensic-grade field tools that help frontline responders track biological threats anywhere in the world.
An international working group including the World Health Organisation, INTERPOL, and the World Organisation for Animal Health identified a critical gap in global biological threat response. Frontline responders - public health professionals, veterinarians, and in-field investigators - were operating with fragmented processes: handwritten notes, separate photographs, delayed communication channels, and inconsistent evidence handling.
These gaps created dangerous vulnerabilities. Lost information, compromised chain-of-custody, delayed escalation, and unusable forensic evidence were hindering the ability to contain biological threats and bring perpetrators to justice. The challenge was particularly acute in developing countries with limited resources, where a variety of identification and communication tools might be used without clear response mechanisms, translating to delays that could cost lives.
The Torrens Resilience Institute at Flinders University, funded through the Government of Canada's Weapons Threat Reduction Program, approached PixelForce with a vision: create a portable, smartphone-based field tool that would standardise biological threat reporting globally whilst working in the most challenging environments - remote locations with limited connectivity, high-risk situations requiring rapid response, and resource-constrained regions lacking sophisticated infrastructure.
The solution needed to serve dual purposes: an operational response tool for active incidents and a training resource referencing globally recognised safety guidelines and protocols.
Our Solution
We developed SuspectED as a native mobile application for iOS (Swift) and Android (Kotlin), building a field-ready tool that transforms smartphones into forensic-grade investigation devices. The development process took 10 months, working closely with the TRI team to translate their vision into a streamlined, intuitive interface.
The app architecture centres around a four-step "See, Record, Collect, Report" workflow designed for rapid deployment during biological events. At each stage, the app guides users through standardised procedures for sampling, safety, and reporting, ensuring consistency regardless of where in the world it is deployed.
A critical technical challenge was enabling offline functionality. Biological threats often occur in remote locations with unreliable or non-existent internet connectivity. We engineered the app to work entirely offline, storing all data locally on the user's device. When connectivity is detected, the app automatically self-updates its content, ensuring users always have access to the latest international guidance and protocols.
The forensic chain-of-custody requirement demanded meticulous attention to metadata. Every photograph captured through the app is automatically stamped with date, time, and GPS coordinates, creating an unbroken evidence trail. The app enforces mandatory fields and photographic evidence, ensuring comprehensive documentation that can withstand legal scrutiny in criminal investigations. Users cannot proceed without recording key observations - a deliberate constraint that encourages thorough initial documentation.
Sample collection protocols follow strict clinical procedures. Each sample must be accurately labelled, with the app guiding users through proper safety equipment usage, collection techniques, and transport guidelines referencing international standards. The chain-of-custody process includes provisions for handover documentation, with PDF reports that can be printed and signed by receiving laboratories to complete the evidence trail.
The interface required careful UX design. As Hinney Lo noted: "As an incident investigation tool, the design of the UI and UX needed to be quick and easy to use. A simple interface and a streamlined user flow mean that in just a few minutes investigators can create a highly informative field report that captures all the key details needed in an incident report."
Privacy considerations shaped the architecture fundamentally. All personally identifiable information remains local to the user's device - never transmitted to servers or accessible by others. Reports can be sent via email or secure messaging services like WhatsApp, with options to send with or without photos to manage file size constraints based on available connectivity.
The app also serves as a training resource, containing triggers and indicators checklists that help users evaluate the likelihood of emerging or deliberate biological events. International guidance is embedded within the app, providing field responders with reference materials on safety, sample collection, and transport protocols.
Since launching in January 2020 - coinciding with the COVID-19 pandemic - SuspectED has been deployed in developing countries including India, Pakistan, and Indonesia, where it addresses the specific challenge of operating in environments with reduced resources and less structured response systems.
Our services included
Technical Breakdown
Built natively for iOS using Swift and Android using Kotlin, SuspectED operates entirely offline with automatic content updates when connectivity is detected. The app captures photographs with embedded GPS and temporal metadata, maintains forensic-grade chain-of-custody documentation, and stores all data locally for privacy compliance. This architecture enables frontline responders to create comprehensive field reports in remote, high-risk environments whilst maintaining the evidence integrity required for criminal investigations and global health security responses.