Audit Trail System

Overview

Striae automatically tracks all your actions to create a comprehensive audit trail for forensic accountability. This system logs everything you do - from uploading files to creating annotations - ensuring complete traceability for legal compliance.

What Gets Tracked

The audit trail system automatically records:

📁 Case Management Activities

  • Creating new cases

  • Renaming cases

  • Deleting cases

📤 File Operations

  • Uploading images to cases

  • Viewing/accessing files

  • Deleting files from cases

✏️ Annotation Work

  • Creating new annotations (notes and box annotations)

  • Editing existing annotations

  • Deleting annotations

👤 User Activities

  • Logging into Striae

  • Logging out

  • Updating your profile information

  • Password resets

📦 Case Export/Import

  • Exporting case packages for sharing

  • Importing case packages from other examiners

  • Creating confirmations of other examiners' work

📄 Document Generation

  • Generating PDF reports from your annotations

🔒 Security Events

  • Failed login attempts

  • Blocked actions (like trying to confirm your own work)

  • File integrity validation results

Accessing Your Audit Trail

Opening the Audit Viewer

  1. From Manage Profile, look for the 'View My Audit Trail' button

  2. Click to open the Audit Trail Viewer

  3. The viewer opens in a modal window overlay

  1. From the Case Actions Menu, look for the purple 'Audit Trail' button

  2. Click to open the Audit Trail Viewer

  3. The viewer opens in a modal window overlay

Understanding the Interface

The Audit Viewer has several sections:

Header Section

  • Title: Shows "My Audit Trail" or case-specific title

  • Export Buttons: Download your audit data

  • Close Button: Exit the viewer

Summary Section

  • User Information: Your name, email, lab/company, and User ID

  • Activity Statistics: Total events, successful actions, failed actions

  • Date Range: Time period of displayed data

Filters Section

Use these controls to narrow down what you see:

  • Date Range: Choose from preset ranges (Last 24 hours, Last 7 days, Last 30 days) or set custom dates

  • Case Number: Filter to see only activities for a specific case

  • Action Type: Filter by what type of action was performed

  • Result Status: Show only successful, failed, or blocked actions

Entries List

Shows your actual audit entries with:

  • Timestamp: When the action occurred

  • Action: What you did (e.g., "file-upload", "annotation-create")

  • Result: Whether it was successful, failed, or blocked

  • Details: Specific information about the action

  • Case Information: Which case was affected (if applicable)

Using Filters

Date Range Filtering

Preset Options:

  • Last 24 hours: Recent activity from today

  • Last 7 days: This week's work

  • Last 30 days: This month's activity (default)

  • All Time: Everything (may be slow for long-term users)

  • Custom Range: Set your own start and end dates

To use custom dates:

  1. Select "Custom Range" from the dropdown

  2. Enter your start date (YYYY-MM-DD format)

  3. Enter your end date (YYYY-MM-DD format)

  4. Click "Apply Date Range"

To clear date range filter:

  1. Click the 'Clear Dates' button next to the date range fields

Case Number Filtering

To filter by case:

  1. Enter the case number in the "Case Number" field

  2. Click the 'Filter' button or press Enter

  3. The list will update to show only activities for that case

To clear case filter:

  1. Click the 'Clear' button next to the case number field

Action Type Filtering

Filter by the type of action:

  • All: Show everything (default)

  • file-upload: Only file uploads

  • annotation-create: Only new annotations

  • case-create: Only new cases

  • confirm: Only confirmation activities

  • export: Only case exports

  • And more...

Result Status Filtering

Filter by outcome:

  • All: Show everything (default)

  • success: Only successful actions

  • failure: Only failed actions

  • blocked: Only actions blocked by security

  • warning: Only actions that completed with warnings

Exporting Your Audit Trail

You can download your audit trail data in multiple formats:

CSV Export

Best for: Spreadsheet analysis, sharing with administrators

To export CSV:

  1. Apply any filters you want (optional)

  2. Click "CSV" in the header

  3. File automatically downloads as striae-audit-user-{your-id}-{timestamp}.csv

CSV includes: Timestamp, action details, case numbers, file information, performance metrics

JSON Export

Best for: Technical analysis, system integration

To export JSON:

  1. Apply any filters you want (optional)

  2. Click "JSON" in the header

  3. File automatically downloads as striae-audit-user-{your-id}-{timestamp}.json

JSON includes: Complete technical details, all metadata, structured format

Summary Report

Best for: Human-readable compliance reports

To generate report:

  1. Apply any filters you want (optional)

  2. Click "Report" in the header

  3. File downloads as striae-audit-summary-{case}-{timestamp}.txt

Report includes: Activity statistics, timeline summary, compliance status

Understanding Audit Entries

Entry Information

Each audit entry shows:

Basic Information

  • Timestamp: Exact date and time (in your local timezone)

  • Action: What you did (using technical action names)

  • Result: Outcome (success, failure, blocked, warning)

  • User Email: Your email address

File-Related Details

When you work with files, entries include:

  • File Name: Original filename

  • File Size: Size in megabytes

  • File Type: Image, document, etc.

  • Case Number: Which case contains the file

Annotation Details

When you create or edit annotations:

  • Annotation Type: Notes or Box

  • Tool Used: Notes Sidebar or Box Tool

  • Notes Details: Text content of notes

  • Box Position: Where on the image (for box annotations, shows color, coordinates, and dimensions)

Performance Information

  • Processing Time: How long the action took

  • Validation Steps: Security checks performed

Security Information

  • File Integrity: Whether uploaded files passed security checks

  • Authentication Status: Login verification results

  • Access Permissions: Whether you had permission for the action

Common Action Types

Action

What It Means

user-login

You logged into Striae

case-create

You created a new case

file-upload

You uploaded an image to a case

annotation-create

You created a new annotation

annotation-edit

You modified an existing annotation

export

You exported a case package

import

You imported a case package

confirm

You created a confirmation

pdf-generate

You generated a PDF report

Result Status Meanings

Status

What It Means

success

Action completed successfully

failure

Action failed due to an error

blocked

Action was prevented by security rules

warning

Action completed but with issues

Data Storage and Retention

Where Your Data Is Stored

  • Location: Secure Cloudflare R2 storage with 99.999999999% (eleven 9s) annual durability¹

  • Encryption: AES-256 encryption with GCM mode at rest²

  • Organization: Files organized by user and day

  • Access: Only you can access your own audit data

Data Retention

  • Policy: All audit data is kept permanently

  • Purpose: Forensic compliance and legal evidence requirements

  • Export: You can export your data at any time

Privacy and Access

Who Can See Your Audit Trail

  • You: Full access to your own audit data

  • Other Users: Cannot see your audit trail

  • System Administrators: May have access for system maintenance, reporting, or compliance audits

  • Legal Requirements: Data may be accessed if required by law

Data Security

  • User Isolation: Your data is completely separate from other users

  • Encrypted Storage: All data encrypted with AES-256 with GCM mode²

  • Tamper-Proof: Audit entries cannot be modified once created

Troubleshooting

Audit Entries Not Showing

Problem: You performed actions but don't see them in the audit trail

Solutions:

  1. Check Date Range: Make sure your date filter includes when you did the work

  2. Clear Filters: Remove case number or action filters that might be hiding entries

  3. Refresh: Close and reopen the audit viewer

  4. Check Case Number: Ensure the case number filter is correct (if used)

Slow Loading

Problem: Audit trail takes a long time to load

Solutions:

  1. Use Date Filters: Select a shorter time range (like "Last 7 days")

  2. Apply Case Filter: Focus on one specific case

  3. Check Internet: Ensure stable connection to Cloudflare servers

  4. Close Other Tabs: Free up browser memory

Export Issues

Problem: Export files are empty or downloads fail

Solutions:

  1. Check Pop-ups: Ensure your browser allows downloads from Striae

  2. Try Different Format: If CSV fails, try JSON export

  3. Reduce Date Range: Export smaller time periods

  4. Clear Browser Cache: Refresh your browser data

Filter Not Working

Problem: Filters don't seem to affect the displayed entries

Solutions:

  1. Press Enter or Click 'Filter': After typing in filter fields, click the button or press Enter to apply

  2. Check Spelling: Ensure case numbers are typed correctly

  3. Use Exact Match: Case numbers must match exactly

  4. Clear Other Filters: Remove conflicting filters

Best Practices

Regular Review

  • Weekly: Check your audit trail weekly to verify accuracy

  • Before Court: Export relevant audit data before legal proceedings

  • After Major Work: Review audit trail after completing significant cases

Filter Usage

  • Start Broad: Begin with wide date ranges, then narrow down

  • One Filter: Use one filter type at a time for clarity

  • Document Filters: Note which filters you used when exporting data

Export Strategy

  • Multiple Formats: Export in both CSV (for analysis) and JSON (for backup)

  • Regular Exports: Export audit data monthly for your records

  • Case-Specific: Export case-specific audit trails when closing cases

Data Management

  • Consistent Case Numbers: Use consistent case numbering for easier filtering

  • Meaningful Filenames: Use descriptive filenames for easier audit trail reading

  • Regular Cleanup: Review and organize your exported audit files

Getting Help

If you need assistance with the audit trail system:

  1. Check This Guide: Review the relevant sections above

  2. Try Different Approaches: Use different filters or export formats

  3. Contact Support: Reach out to Striae technical support

  4. Document Issues: Note exactly what you were doing when problems occurred

The audit trail system is designed to be transparent and comprehensive, giving you complete visibility into your forensic examination work while ensuring legal compliance and accountability.

References

¹ Cloudflare R2 provides 99.999999999% (eleven 9s) annual durability through automatic replication across their infrastructure:

² Cloudflare R2 and KV storage use AES-256 encryption with GCM (Galois/Counter Mode) for all data at rest:

Additional Security and Compliance Resources:

Need additional help? Don't hesitate to reach out to our support team. We're here to ensure you have secure and seamless access to Striae's features.

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