What should I do if the device appears damaged or wet?¶

A damaged or wet mobile device may still contain valuable evidence, but careless handling can make the situation worse.

What this means¶

Safety comes first.

Keep associated items such as cases, SIM trays, memory cards, cables and damaged components together and correctly labelled.

Avoid putting a wet device into rice or other household drying materials. These methods can introduce contamination and do not provide controlled evidence preservation.

A damaged device may contain recoverable storage even where the screen, battery or main board has failed. Specialist techniques may allow access later.

The condition may also be evidential. Damage could support or challenge an account of when and how the device was used, discarded or destroyed.

Photograph the device and packaging process where lawful and appropriate. Record every action taken.

Where the device is powered on despite damage, obtain specialist guidance urgently because both power loss and continued operation may create risk.

The operational takeaway is: make the device safe, record its condition, do not power or dry it casually, preserve every associated component and seek specialist support before attempting recovery.

What to check or do next¶

• If the device is swollen, overheating, smoking, leaking or visibly burned, move people away and follow local safety procedures. Lithium batteries can fail suddenly and should not be treated like ordinary damaged property.
• Do not switch the device on to see whether it works.
• Do not connect it to power.
• Do not repeatedly press buttons, remove covers or attempt to dry it with heat.
• If the device is wet, record where and how it was found, whether it was submerged, what liquid was involved and how long it may have been exposed.
• Do not clean corrosion or residue before specialist examination.