Entity management

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Overview

An entity is to a self-contained object or item that has a distinct identity. It is any piece of information that’s important for your investigation or intelligence work.

Entities help organize and track all the critical data in one place. They are the building blocks of case management. You can create new entities and customize existing ones.

The ‘Entity types’ section in Admin console contains all of the information on entities. Entities are organized in a tabular structure, where each row represents an entity.

entity-type

Standard entities

Investigation: This entity contains case details, notes, tasks, and other information related to a specific investigation.
Address: This entity contains information about physical addresses, including street address, city, state, and zip code.
IP Address: This entity contains information about digital addresses, including IP addresses, and browser information.
Automation: This entity contains information about automated processes or workflows within your case management system.
Online Identity: This entity contains information about online identities.
Media: This entity contains information about digital media related to a case, such as photos, or videos.
Media Series: This entity contains information about a series of media files that are related to each other.
People: This entity contains information about individuals who are relevant to the case, such as suspects, witnesses, or victims.

Different entities can be linked to create a holistic view of investigative data. This helps users to easily navigate and analyze data.

Creating an entity

You can create a new entity in the following manner:

Open side navigation in the admin console.
Click on Entity types to open the list of existing entities.
Click on the plus (+) icon on the right. This opens the new entity wizard.
Type a name for the entity you wish to create. Then, click on the Add button.
Select a suitable template for the entity. Each template allows access to a different set of features.
Click on Create to submit. This creates the entity.

Fields

Entity fields are specific attributes or properties associated with an entity, providing detailed information about the entity.

Fields can vary widely depending on the type of entity but generally include both predefined fields (such as an IP address for an “IP Address” entity) and custom fields that can be tailored to the needs of the investigation.

Examples of entity fields might include:

For “Investigation” entity: Name, Description, Start date, Status, etc.
For “IP address” entity: IP address, Allocation date, Country of origin, Associated domains, etc.
For “Online identity” entity: Username, Platform, Known aliases, Linked email addresses, etc.
For “Phone number” entity: Phone number, Country code, Carrier, Associated persons, etc.

These fields give you detailed insights into the entity, making it easier to analyze and understand.

Fields vary with templates

When creating an entity, you’ll begin by choosing a template. The template you select determines the fields that will be available for the entity. This step ensures that the entity is structured with the relevant information right from the start, tailored to the specific type of data it represents.

Making changes to fields

You can make changes to the fields as well as add new field types to the entity. The available field types are as follows:

Text - regular and long
Dropdown – text and cascading
Number – regular and long
Decimal
Date
Time
Date and time
Image
JSON
Checkbox
Currency *

Adding a new field to entity

Adding a field to an entity allows you to capture more specific or detailed information about that entity. Here’s how you can add a new field:

Go to the ‘Entity types’ section in Admin console.
Locate the entity to which you want to add a field. Use search to quickly find the entity.
Once you locate it, click on the ‘Fields’ cell that corresponds to the entity. This takes you to the fields section.
The field options in the menu allow you to add a new field. Hover over each option to understand its function.
Click the required field option to proceed. This opens a popup form where you can fill in the details for your new field, such as the field’s name, values, and any other relevant configurations.
Click on Advanced settings to configure it further.
After configuring the new field, save your changes. The new field is now added to the entity and ready to be filled with data.

Editing an existing field

Within the fields section, click on a field that you wish to edit. This makes the Actions menu available.
Click on Edit to open the edit mode. Click on Advanced settings to expand the form.
Once you’ve made the changes, click on Save

Entity settings

Entity settings involve rules and preferences about how entities behave or are treated within Hubstream. This includes who can see or edit an entity, how different entities are linked together, and the steps or processes an entity might go through during an investigation.

Settings ensure that the right people have the right access, and that the data is handled correctly throughout its lifecycle.

You can access an entity’s settings by clicking on the corresponding cell in the column ‘Settings’.

entity-type

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