Smartphones are now the most crucial source of digital evidence in solving nearly every criminal investigation, a report has found.
Detectives rely on the wealth of information held on the devices in 97 per cent of cases – double the number in which data from laptops was needed.
With the devices containing swathes of detailed messages, photos and location data, police chiefs told the Mail the devices had become ‘a crime scene in your pocket’.
Evidence from mobiles has proved vital in securing high-profile convictions over recent years, from Brianna Ghey‘s killers to disgraced BBC presenter Huw Edwards.
The 2026 Industry Trends report by Cellebrite, which provides global law enforcement agencies with digital forensics tools, surveyed 1,200 investigators.
It found smartphones were by far the most cited source of digital evidence in solving cases, up from 73 per cent of cases the previous year. Second was laptops at 51 per cent, followed by CCTV at 41 per cent.
Cryptocurrency was found to be the fastest growing source of evidence, used in over a fifth – 22 per cent – of cases, largely due to the continued rise in online scams.
David Gee, Chief Marketing Officer of Cellebrite said: ‘The mobile phone is your digital twin – it knows who you are, where you’ve been, who you talk to, and everything else in between.
Smartphones are now the most crucial source of digital evidence in solving nearly every criminal investigation, a report has found (file photo)
‘You can see the growth of its importance across forensic data – at this point it’s part of almost every investigation. Vastly exceeding the laptop now because it’s literally with you everywhere you go.
‘It’s clear digital evidence is the backbone of modern justice,’ he added.
Matt Scott, Police and Crime Commissioner for Kent, said: ‘Smartphone evidence plays a crucial role in enabling officers to establish the facts, build a clear timeline of events and bring criminals to justice.’
In Brianna Ghey’s murder investigation, detectives forensically recovered WhatsApp messages from both teenage killers’ phones that revealed months of premeditated planning and a ‘kill list’ proving central to convicting the pair in 2024.
The same year, a court heard how dozens of illegal images of children and payments were found in a phone chat on disgraced BBC presenter Huw Edward’s phone with a convicted paedophile, which was crucial in securing his guilty plea.
Calling for more appreciation of the work of police digital forensics teams, Lisa Townsend, Police Crime Commissioner for Surrey, said: ‘It is no longer about just dusting for prints, modern policing is so much more complex and online.
In Brianna Ghey’s (pictured) murder investigation, detectives forensically recovered WhatsApp messages from both teenage killers’ phones that revealed months of premeditated planning and a ‘kill list’ proving central to convicting the pair in 2024
The same year, a court heard how dozens of illegal images of children and payments were found in a phone chat on disgraced BBC presenter Huw Edward’s (pictured) phone with a convicted paedophile, which was crucial in securing his guilty plea
‘Smartphones are like a crime scene in your pocket. It’s very unusual not for a crime to lead back now to your digital footprint.’
The report further revealed 65 per cent of detectives – who are often juggling up to ten cases at a time – were increasingly relying on AI to speed up their caseload.
A typical investigation requires up to 35 hours of – with 60 per cent of that time spent sifting through and evaluating evidence rather than chasing leads or interviewing people.
Two-thirds of respondents cited time as the biggest barrier to moving cases, with manual review creates bottlenecks that delay justice for victims.
A third said they had been prevented from doing so due to internal policies.
It comes after West Midlands Chief Constable Craig Guildford admitted his force relied on false information generated by Microsoft Copilot, an AI tool, when making the controversial decision to ban Maccabi Tel Aviv fans from attending a Europa League match against Aston Villa last year.
