Please find below a number of frequently asked questions and answers in relation to purchasing, licensing and general issues.  If you cannot find the answer you are looking for, please feel free to contact us.

Purchasing

You can find our terms and conditions of trade here:  Terms and Conditions of Trade


In some cases, we will accept purchase orders from legitimate Government and Law Enforcement Agencies for multiple licences.  Our preferred method of payment is via credit/debit card, Bank Transfer or UK/US Currency cheque.  We will not accept purchase orders from software resellers, or where the software is purchased for a third party.  Please contact us to discuss purchasing options.  Please note, US currency payments will only be accepted for US customers.  See the Payment Options FAQ below.


If you are unable to purchase with a credit or debit card, you may be able to buy with a purchase order. Purchase orders will only be accepted for multiple licence purchases and will not be accepted from software resellers.  If you have received a formal quotation from us, you can return this by email along with a purchase order.  Payment will be required within 30 days via bank transfer or cheque.  You must ensure that all bank charges are paid by the sender; we must receive the full invoiced amount.  Please also ensure that you pay the correct currency into the correct bank account.  If any mistakes are made, the money will be returned and you will be charged for any bank charges or costs incurred.


The easiest way to purchase our software is by credit/debit card via our Online Store.  All card transactions are processed by Worldpay.  Please telephone us if you wish to provide credit card details and make a purchase.  For our contact telephone numbers, please visit the Contacts Page.  In some circumstances, we can accept payments via cheque or bank transfer (USD and GBP) with a purchase order transaction.  With large order, you may be required to pay a 20% deposit.  We can currently accept card payments for the following cards:

  • (GBP £): American Express, MasterCard, JCB, Maestro, Solo, Visa, Visa Debit and Visa Electron
  • (USD $): MasterCard, Visa, Visa Debit and Visa Electron


As we are based in the United Kingdom, we are not required to complete form W-9.  We can provide a form W-8BEN on request for purchase order transactions. Please contact us to let us know if you need one of these completed.

  File Modified
PDF File W-8BEN.pdf Jul 09, 2013 by Craig Wilson


No. We distribute all our software electronically so that we are able to keep costs down and to comply with UK VAT rules.

  

Yes you can, please see the Payment Options FAQ above.  We accept payment in US Dollars and GB Pounds.

The easiest way to see how much our products cost in US Dollars is to visit our store and select US Currency on the front page.  The US Dollar cost is based on the exchange rate and will change as the currency exchange rate fluctuates. 


We do not normally sell our software via resellers.  Sometimes an agency or company can only purchase through a reseller; in these circumstances, the reseller may purchase licences from us.


As a reseller, you can purchase licences from us on behalf of a customer.  However, we do not offer discounts to resellers.  If you wish to purchase via purchase order, licences or hardware keys will not be sent until payment has been received.  Further charges may be applicable.

  

The licence key generation process is manual on confirmation of a successful purchase.  Orders are processed during normal office hours.

If you have purchased via our online store, the order will not be processed until full payment has been received.  On successful payment, you will receive 2 emails confirming this; the first from Worldpay confirming the payment, the second from our online store confirming the payment has been received.  If you do not receive either email then the payment did not go through.  Once this has been manually reviewed by our sales team, the order will be changed to cancelled or declined.

Please remember that we are in the United Kingdom so our time zone in GMT.  We will endeavour to generate and send licence keys within 1 business day of purchase.  Normally, licence key files are generated within 2 hours of purchase (during normal office hours).

USB dongle licences are sent out via DHL/UPS for International purchases and Royal Mail for UK purchases.  Our cut off time for orders requiring same day shipping is:

  • DHL- 1300 hours (UK local time)

  • Royal Mail - 1400 hours (UK local time)


Our returns policy can be found here: Returns Policy  

For returns, please see our Returns Policy.  If for any reason a sale is cancelled prior to shipping any goods (following a credit/debit card purchase), there is a £10 GBP (or equivalent if an alternative currency was originally used) administration charge for refunds if the cancellation is at the request of the customer.

Software Licensing

Our EULA can be found here: End User Licence Agreement

   

No; If you have purchased a single (static) licence key file, it can only be used on a single workstation.  You are only permitted to move the licence in certain circumstances (see Static Licence Key Files for further information).  We will shortly be integrating hardware locked licence key files.

If you wish to have the flexibility to move your licence between a workstation and laptop (or any other machines with the software installed) you will need to purchase a USB dongle licence.  Please see USB Hardware Dongles HstEx for further information.


The license is perpetual and you will still be able to use software that has been released during the period your SMS period is active. However, if your SMS expires, you will not be able to enjoy the benefits of technical support and product upgrades. Technical Support is a vital factor when you purchase the software and is required for long-term usage. Product enhancements and upgrades allow you to keep up with the technology improvements and support for the latest operating systems. In the field of digital forensic science, it is extremely important to have access to software which supports the latest developments in technology.


This is entirely up to you.  You may wish to register the licence name in the name of your agency, company or unit.  Alternatively, if your licence is a personal licence, you may wish to use your own name. 

Note

Licences cannot be transferred to a third party.  Licence name changes are at the discretion of Digital Detective Group and may be subject to an administration charge of at least £35 GBP.  Please contact us to discuss name changes.  If you upgrade your licence from a key file to USB dongle, licence name changes are free.

  

Licence name changes are at the discretion of Digital Detective Group Ltd.  Licence name changes are subject to a minimum charge of £35.  Please contact us to discuss licence name changes.  Please note that licences cannot be transferred to a third party.  If you upgrade your licence from a key file to USB dongle, licence name changes are free.


No, this is not permissible.      

Yes we do.  Dongle protection will allow the user to install our software on as many machines as they like and run the software with a dongle connected.  This makes life much easier, particularly when using the software on a laptop or within a multi-machine lab environment.  Please see USB Dongle Licence for further information.

   

Educational licences are not to be used for commercial digital forensics work under any circumstances.  They are for educational purposes only.  Educational licences cannot be upgraded for commercial use.  Please contact us if you are interested in purchasing educational licences to establish eligibility.  Please note, we provide educational pricing to non-profit training establishments only.  We do not provide educational pricing to individuals.  

General Questions

Our office hours are 0800 - 1630 hours (United Kingdom local time), Monday to Friday.  We can be contacted via email outside these hours.  The support portal is monitored outside normal working hours; however, we are in the United Kingdom, so our time zone is (UTC) Dublin, Edinburgh, Lisbon, London.  Orders are processed during normal working hours.


There are a number of ways to obtain support on our products.  The primary route is via the online Support Portal.  The portal allows you to register and create a support ticket which you can then track. The portal also has a facility to allow you to upload screen shots and other files.  When you submit a support ticket, you will receive an email containing the tracking number.  Our support engineers will contact you as soon as practicable.

If your problem is not directly related to our products, or related to a general forensic issue, our Forensic Forum may have the answer.  The forums are full of useful information and tips.  Please read the joining instructions very carefully when submitting your application. 

We also have a comprehensive, searchable Knowledge Base which should be your first port of call.

  

If you have found a bug in our software, please use the Support Portal to report it.  This will allow us to deal with your issue effectively.  Before creating a support ticket, please ensure you have the following information:

  • Your licence ID - this can be found in Help » About

  • The exact version and build of the software you were using.

  • The type of operating system you were using and any service packs installed.

  • You will need to provide us with accurate instructions on how to recreate the issue you have identified.

Please read the following article: What is the correct way to report an issue or request support.  If you can provide screen shots of any errors, this will help to track down the issue and allow us to see what the problem is.

              

Yes we do. Please see our training space for further information: Training


To get started with our products, please see the following:

    

 

Please see the following links for information and manual downloads: