A method for preserving chain of custody for digital evidence captured at a portable device , the method comprising: transmitting, at the portable device , to a cloud server , a request for approval to upload the digital evidence to the cloud server via an intermediary storage device , the request comprising a digitally signed metadata associated with the digital evidence , a first authentication credential associated with the intermediary storage device , and a second authentication credential associated with the portable device , wherein the digitally signed metadata includes a data integrity code that is generated as a function of the digital evidence to be uploaded in response to receiving an approval from the cloud server ; receiving, at the portable device , a first response to the request for approval from the cloud server , the first response indicating approval provided by the cloud server to upload the digital evidence to the cloud server via the intermediary storage device , wherein the approval is provided by the cloud server after verifying that the intermediary storage device is a trusted device and that the intermediary storage device is capable of supporting the transfer of the digital evidence from the portable device to the cloud server ; responsive to receiving the first response, transmitting, at the portable device , the digital evidence to the intermediary storage device for uploading to the cloud server ; transmitting, at the portable device , to the cloud server , a request for approval to delete the digital evidence from the portable device ; receiving, at the portable device , a second response from the cloud server , the second response indicating an approval to delete the digital evidence from the portable device ; and responsive to receiving the second response, deleting, at the portable device , the digital evidence from the portable device . transmitting, at the portable device , to a cloud server , a request for approval to upload the digital evidence to the cloud server via an intermediary storage device , the request comprising a digitally signed metadata associated with the digital evidence , a first authentication credential associated with the intermediary storage device , and a second authentication credential associated with the portable device , wherein the digitally signed metadata includes a data integrity code that is generated as a function of the digital evidence to be uploaded in response to receiving an approval from the cloud server ; receiving, at the portable device , a first response to the request for approval from the cloud server , the first response indicating approval provided by the cloud server to upload the digital evidence to the cloud server via the intermediary storage device , wherein the approval is provided by the cloud server after verifying that the intermediary storage device is a trusted device and that the intermediary storage device is capable of supporting the transfer of the digital evidence from the portable device to the cloud server ; responsive to receiving the first response, transmitting, at the portable device , the digital evidence to the intermediary storage device for uploading to the cloud server ; transmitting, at the portable device , to the cloud server , a request for approval to delete the digital evidence from the portable device ; receiving, at the portable device , a second response from the cloud server , the second response indicating an approval to delete the digital evidence from the portable device ; and responsive to receiving the second response, deleting, at the portable device , the digital evidence from the portable device . <EOS>