Hunchly
An archiving tool that tracks online activities and preserves essential information about the web pages researchers visit.
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An archiving tool that tracks online activities and preserves essential information about the web pages researchers visit.
Last updated
Was this helpful?
Hunchly is an online investigation tool that automatically captures and documents every web page a researcher visits. It eliminates the need for manual note-taking, screenshots, or URL logging.
This tool includes search functionality and history filtering of captured pages. Hunchly allows researchers to locate specific information within their saved web pages. Users can set keywords, what Hunchly calls "selectors", to track and record across web pages and can categorize these pages with tags. Hunchly supports regular expression (Regex) selectors. Users can also mark pages as important to review later or prioritize them in searches and when filtering results.
Hunchly creates a transparent audit trail, which is essential for ensuring the credibility and admissibility of collected data in professional and legal settings.
Available as a Google Chrome plugin, Mobile application, or .
Hunchly offers a range of pricing options, starting with a free 30-day trial that provides access to all features without requiring a credit card. After the trial, the pricing is structured as follows:
Single User Subscription: Priced at $129.99 per year, suitable for use on multiple computers or virtual machines by a single user.
Discounts: Teams, organizations, educational institutions, non-profit organizations, and students are eligible for special discounts.
Hunchly is designed to be user-friendly, with straightforward installation and operation. However, advanced features and complex investigations may require additional learning or technical skills. Overall, Hunchly is accessible for most users, especially with the support and documentation provided.
For the free trial, Hunchly requires a first and last name, email address, and industry selection.
For the paid tiers, Hunchly requires an email, first and last name, billing address, and credit card information.
Hunchly requires the following minimum system specifications:
Windows 10 - 64-bit required
macOS 10.15 (Catalina) or newer
Ubuntu 20.04 LTS or newer (other Debian based distros will likely work without issue)
Hunchly recommends the following minimum system specifications:
8GB of RAM or more
20GB of available disk space for case data
A modern multicore CPU (Intel Core i5/Core i7, Ryzen 3/5/7)
Hunchly highlights potential evidentiary challenges:
Timestamp Mismatches: Differences in time zones or delays in processing can cause discrepancies between the time recorded in Hunchly and the actual time of data capture, complicating evidence validation.
Non-Continuous Page IDs: Universal Page IDs across multiple cases can result in gaps or non-sequential IDs in the evidence record, which may require additional explanation in legal proceedings.
Hash Integrity Issues: Although Hunchly uses SHA-256 hashing to verify data integrity, this does not prevent tampering before the MHTML capture is reviewed. Modified content can be re-hashed to appear legitimate. Hunchly advises using additional verification methods such as GPG signatures, comparing live or archived web content, or securing original material through legal avenues to combat potential tampering.
GPG Signing Vulnerabilities: Technically adept investigators can compromise locally generated GPG keys, allowing tampering and re-signing of evidence while maintaining a valid appearance. Additional verification methods include comparison with live or archived content.
Ethical considerations when using Hunchly include:
Privacy and Consent: Hunchly users should ensure that data collection complies with privacy laws and that consent is obtained when necessary.
Data Integrity: To ensure the accuracy of evidence, Hunchly users must maintain the original state of collected data without alteration.
Transparency: It's important for users to document and disclose how data is collected and processed using Hunchly in investigations.
Accountability: Hunchly users are responsible for ethically using the tool to avoid misusing data or impacting case outcomes.
Security: Users must protect sensitive information against unauthorized access and breaches.
Hunchly
Mia (Bellingcat Volunteer Team)