The States of Jersey Police (SOJP) have begun a 12-month trial of a connection to Kulpa’s secure digital evidence platform, developed by the Jersey-based tech company, Kulpa Platforms Ltd. The initiative is jointly supported and funded by Kulpa and Digital Jersey.
The Kulpa app empowers the public to upload digital evidence of any offence – such as photos, videos, CCTV, chat logs, or anything else that may be relevant. Evidence which, with this new connection, can now be shared directly with SOJP, and the incident reported, whenever the user chooses.
The platform enhances privacy by reducing the need to seize and download a victim or witnesses’ device, accelerates evidence availability and quality for police, and improves victim support.
The platform is certified to meet both BS10008 and ISO27001 standards, ensuring forensic evidential integrity, security and privacy protection.
Kulpa is now an additional option for reporting crime — not a replacement. Islanders can continue to report incidents through existing channels, including in-person visits, calling 612612 for non-emergencies, and using the online reporting tool. Kulpa simply offers a secure digital pathway for those who prefer it, allowing victims and witnesses to store their evidence and submit a report when they feel ready.
“This partnership reflects our commitment to innovation and victim care” said Mark Hafey, Detective Chief Inspector at SOJP. “The Kulpa app can be used by victims and witnesses to provide the SOJP with immediately usable digital forensic evidence, without the police needing to seize or download their device. This is a huge step forward in terms of ensuring the victim or witness privacy and for improving the timelines of investigations, and bringing offenders to justice as quickly as possible.
CEO of Digital Jersey, Tony Moretta said: “We’re delighted to support SOJP and Kulpa in bringing this innovative crime reporting app to Jersey. Already proven in the UK, it gives the public a powerful way to share vital information quickly and directly with the police. From our experience with previous island-wide initiatives, such as the COVID ALERT app and PaybyPhone, we know Jersey people are ready to embrace technology that makes a real difference to our community. It’s especially rewarding to see Kulpa, winners of a Digital Jersey Start-up TechAward in 2022, achieving this level of impact.”
“This is a proud moment for me and Kulpa” said Simon Franc, CEO of Kulpa. “I genuinely believe that the app will be used by victims and witnesses, to report all different types of crime in a very easy and efficient way, and the evidence users share, will help to make our island an even safer place to live. The Kulpa app is free and available for anyone to download from the app stores, or it can be used on a computer by going to Kulpacloud.com.”
The launch follows a successful implementation by Hertfordshire Constabulary, who recently signed a multi-year contract to maintain their connection to Kulpa after a successful pilot. The Force has seen reductions in investigation times, reductions in the number of cases with evidential difficulties, and a reduced need to seize and download victims’ mobile phones and computers.
DCI Mark Hafey explained that digital evidence and external forensic processes can create significant delays. “In the past 18 months, SOJP has seized over 1,000 devices in cases related to violence against women and girls. Devices nowadays can hold up to one terabyte of data – that’s the equivalent of 1,300 filing cabinets of printed text” he said. “Kulpa offers a way to streamline evidence handling while protecting privacy, and we hope it will help us progress investigations more efficiently, and further improve outcomes”
