Proposal of Method for Digital Forensics in Physical Distribution

Abstract

A method for making a traceable platform in physical distribution is proposed in this manuscript. Recently, products and produce are required to be traceable by customers and buyers who ask for safety and quality. However, products and produce are sometimes lost or swapped whether intentionally or not in transportation. They are usually packaged individually and then these packages are put together in a cardboard box. Several of the boxes are put together on a pallet and wound with plastic tape. Several of the pallets are put in a container. Nested wrapping in those processes makes traceability unreliable in physical distribution since contents inside a case cannot be verified without opening the case. It is not feasible to unpack all of the nests in order to verify each product and produce when they are transshipped. The method proposed in this paper makes it possible to authenticate these nested items in transshipments by once verifying one code with an attached digital signature that certifies all nested items inside a case. Still more, the items keep traceability even if they are parted later. Moreover, the method keeps compatibility with current labelling standards in physical distribution, and it will contribute to digital forensics in physical distribution in the future.