NIJ 2010 Electronic Crime and Digital Evidence Recovery | Apply Online

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs): NIJ 2010 Electronic Crime and Digital Evidence Recovery (NIJ 2010-2424)

What is the NIJ 2010 Electronic Crime and Digital Evidence Recovery grant opportunity?

It is a discretionary National Institute of Justice (NIJ) solicitation focused on applied research and development to advance practical technology solutions that help law enforcement investigate electronic crime and recover digital evidence more effectively.

What is the Funding Opportunity Number for this solicitation?

The Funding Opportunity Number is NIJ 2010-2424.

What type of funding mechanism was used for awards?

Awards were issued as cooperative agreements, which generally means recipients should expect a more collaborative working relationship with NIJ than under a typical grant award.

Which CFDA program is this opportunity associated with?

This opportunity fell under CFDA 16.560, titled National Institute of Justice Research, Evaluation, and Development Project Grants.

What was NIJ trying to achieve through this solicitation?

NIJ framed this program as applied research and development aimed at improving real-world forensic and investigative capacity by supporting tools and techniques that can be used in practice by law enforcement.

What were the main technical priority areas highlighted in the solicitation?

The solicitation highlighted several technical priorities: faster and more efficient forensic data acquisition; improved cell phone forensic acquisition and analysis tools (including technologies such as boot loaders); tools to address criminal use of Internet anonymizers; damaged hard drive data recovery and forensic examination tools; and Macintosh forensic tools.

Did the solicitation emphasize improving the speed and efficiency of digital evidence collection?

Yes. A major area was faster, more efficient data acquisition, with an emphasis on speeding up and streamlining collection while maintaining forensic soundness.

Were mobile device (cell phone) forensic tools specifically included?

Yes. NIJ called for improved cell phone forensic acquisition and analysis tools and explicitly referenced technologies like boot loaders.

Did the solicitation address challenges created by Internet anonymizers?

Yes. It targeted development of investigative and forensic tools to address criminal use of Internet anonymizers that can obscure identities and complicate attribution.

Was damaged hard drive data recovery a specific focus?

Yes. NIJ identified damaged hard drive data recovery and forensic examination tools as a priority, recognizing that media failure or deliberate damage can prevent access to critical information.

Were Macintosh forensic capabilities included as a priority?

Yes. NIJ identified a need for Macintosh forensic tools, noting that Apple systems required more dedicated support and specialized capabilities in many forensic toolkits at the time.

Who was eligible to apply?

Eligibility was listed as unrestricted, meaning the competition was open to any type of applicant organization, subject to any additional eligibility clarifications in the full solicitation.

Was cost sharing or matching required?

No. The opportunity did not require cost sharing or matching funds.

What were the award floor and ceiling amounts?

In the summary record, both the award ceiling and award floor were listed as 0. This typically indicates that applicants needed to consult the full solicitation for actual funding amounts, expected award sizes, or the number of anticipated awards.

How were applications required to be submitted?

Applications were required to be submitted through the Office of Justice Programs (OJP) Grants Management System (GMS), an online system used for application submission and ongoing grant administration.

Why was early registration in GMS emphasized?

The solicitation emphasized starting the registration process early (especially for first-time users) because GMS registration could take time, and delays could jeopardize on-time submission.

Where were applicants directed for GMS training and registration instructions?

Applicants were directed to the GMS training and registration instructions at www.ojp.usdoj.gov/gmscbt/.

How could applicants get help with technical problems in GMS?

For technical issues, applicants could contact the GMS Help Desk by email at GMSHelpDesk@usdoj.gov or by phone at 1-888-549-9901 (option 3).

What were the GMS Help Desk hours of operation?

The GMS Help Desk was available Monday through Friday from 6:00 a.m. to midnight Eastern Time, excluding federal holidays.

When was the opportunity posted?

The posted date in the record was February 16, 2010.

What was the application deadline?

The application deadline (original and current closing date) was April 2, 2010.

Is this funding opportunity still active?

No. The record shows an archive date of July 2, 2010, indicating the opportunity was no longer active after that point.

Who was the NIJ point of contact for programmatic questions?

The listed NIJ contact was Martin Novak, Physical Scientist.

How could applicants contact the NIJ programmatic point of contact?

Martin Novak could be reached by phone at 202-616-0630 or by email at martin.novak@usdoj.gov.