Administrative Procedure #31 Taking and Uploading Case Photos in SACWIS and A.S.K. Mobile App

ADMINISTRATIVE PROCEDURES #31 
 
Taking and Uploading Case Photos in SACWIS and A.S.K. Mobile App 
September 29, 2020 – PT 2020.16 
 
  
Illinois Department of Children and Family Services 
Administrative Procedure #31 – (1) 
Table of Contents 
 
31.1  Purpose 
31.2  Case Photo Features in SACWIS and A.S.K. 
31.3  Categorizing Photos 
31.4  Labeling Photos 
31.5  Acquiring Photos Taken by Others 
31.6  Notification and Consent Requirements 
31.7  Use of Photographs in Documentation 
31.8  Emailing Photos 
Appendix A – Tips for Taking High Quality Photos with a Smart Phone 
 
Section 31.1  Purpose 
 
The purpose of this Administrative Procedure is to provide a protocol for taking photos in the 
course of casework, and uploading and storing photos in SACWIS and the A.S.K. mobile app. 
Both SACWIS and A.S.K allow “Identification”, “Child” and “Home/Environment” photos to be 
uploaded and stored in a family and/or child case. 
 
This  Administrative  Procedure  applies  to  all  Department  Child  Protection  Specialists,  and 
Department  and  Purchase  of  Service  agency  (POS)  Intact  Family  Workers  and  Permanency 
Workers and their supervisors. 
 
Section 31.2  Case Photo Features in SACWIS and A.S.K. 
 
DCFS and POS workers can capture and upload case related photos by using the A.S.K. mobile 
app.  Photo types are case member specific and are available for all case members, including adult 
case members when appropriate.  Photos can also be uploaded directly into SACWIS from the 
A.S.K. mobile app.  Workers can also upload photos acquired from other sources into SACWIS 
(see Section 31.5, Acquiring Photos Taken by Others). 
 
All Department and  POS casework staff who take case related photos with Department 
issued or personal phones must: 
 
•  have the A.S.K. app on that phone; and 
 
•  take the photo only while working in the A.S.K. app. 
 
To ensure the confidentiality of case information, Department and POS casework staff shall 
take photos only when using the A.S.K. mobile app. 
 
Department and POS staff shall not take case related photos using their regular iPhone camera 
feature or store case related photos in the iPhone photo gallery.  Just as personal photos taken with 
an iPhone camera and stored in the gallery are not secure, case related photos taken and stored this 
way would also not be secure. 
 
The Department does not authorize Department or POS staff to use any app other than the 
A.S.K. mobile app for taking case related photos. 

ADMINISTRATIVE PROCEDURE #31

Taking and Uploading Case Photos in SACWIS and A.S.K. Mobile App

September 29, 2020 – PT 2020.16

Administrative Procedure #31 – (2)

All photo functions are accessed through the “Photos” link in SACWIS. SACWIS Release 5.21

(at D-Net Links>OITS>SACWIS) contains detailed instructions and screen shots to instruct staff

on how to categorize and upload photos.

The A.S.K. app has a Photo page in Family and Child Cases. The “Working with Case Photos”

tip is available in the A.S.K. menu to instruct staff on how to capture and upload these photos to

SACWIS.

Section 31.3 Categorizing Photos

Each photo uploaded in SACWIS and A.S.K. must be categorized as one of the following:

• “Identification” photo. This is a case member-specific photo. Workers must ensure

that an accurate, current “identification photo” of each youth in care is in SACWIS.

Identification photos must be a frontal view of the youth’s face, neck and shoulders

only. The youth should be standing in front of a plain or solid background (so the

background does not distract from the subject). All identification photos should be

taken indoors and updated annually or sooner if the child’s appearance significantly

changes. (See Procedure 301.150, Identification Procedures for Children in

Placement.)

The identification photo is the only required photo for each child in DCFS custody or

guardianship.

• “Condition” photo. This is a case member-specific photo. This includes any photo

of a child or adult that is taken to document marks, scars, bruises and other visible

injuries to the child or adult. (Example: the child or adult has a bruise on a visible part

of the body); or

• “Home/Environment” photo. This includes any photo taken when there is a condition

of the home or environment that is relevant to a concern that the worker is documenting.

Home/Environment photos may be uploaded and used as needed on intact family and

placement cases.

When an injury to a child or an unsanitary or unsafe condition of the home/environment

requires a call to SCR, and Call Floor Worker informs the Intact Family/Permanency

Worker that a report is being taken, the assigned Child Protection Specialist will photograph

the child or scene as part of the child protection investigation.

Section 31.4 Labeling Photos

SACWIS and A.S.K. automatically apply known information (such as name, CYCIS or

investigation or ID number, and date/time) as part of the photo capture process in the A.S.K. app

and photo upload process in SACWIS. The following additional information must be provided

for each identification, condition and home/environment photo:

• for identification photos, the child’s height, weight, scars, tattoos and any other

distinguishing marks are documented in the “Description” field and in a contact note;

• identify any non-case member in the photo;

ADMINISTRATIVE PROCEDURE #31

Taking and Uploading Case Photos in SACWIS and A.S.K. Mobile App

September 29, 2020 – PT 2020.16

Administrative Procedure #31 – (3)

• identify where the photo is taken with detailed information. State the primary person

involved (e.g., Mary Smith’s bedroom, Frank Smith’s kitchen), address of the home, etc.;

• identify what is being documented in the photo in detail (e.g., stack of dirty dishes in sink,

rodent damage in hallway, exposed wiring within reach of children); and

• the name(s) of all persons present when the photo was taken.

Section 31.5 Acquiring Photos Taken by Others

All photos provided to the Department by other sources, (e.g., schools, hospitals, law enforcement)

become the property of the Department, shall be labeled by the worker as noted in Section 31.4

and uploaded into the SACWIS family and/or child case.

For photos acquired from another party (e.g., law enforcement, medical staff), the worker must

document the date and time the photo was taken in the “Description” field. If uploaded in

SACWIS, the date/time stamp will record only the time uploaded. The worker shall enter any

relevant information (who-what-where-when) provided by the sender when uploading the photo.

Example: The child’s doctor, Anthony Doe, emailed this worker 5 photos taken during his

examination of the child at the DeKalb County Hospital Emergency Room when the child

presented with a broken left arm and left leg on 12-6-19 at 5:00 p.m. Per Dr. Doe, Image

1 shows … Image 2 shows … Images 3, 4 and 5 are a collage. The top left image shows…

The top right image shows … The bottom right image shows ….

Workers continue to remain responsible to thoroughly document their observations in contact

notes. The ability to take and upload these photos in the case record does not change that

requirement.

Section 31.6 Notification and Consent Requirements

a) Child Protection Investigations. A Child Protection Specialist is required to notify a

parent or legal guardian that the Department has the right to take or obtain photos during

an investigation and document this notification in a contact note. Notification can be made

by phone. Notification is not required to take a photo of a youth in care in an assigned

investigation. Consent is not required to take photos in Child Protection Investigations.

b) Placement Cases. A Permanency Worker must ask a parent, legal guardian or substitute

caregiver for verbal consent to take a “condition” photo of a child not in DCFS custody or

guardianship who is living in the home of parent/guardian/substitute caregiver. A

Permanency Worker must also obtain verbal consent before taking any

“home/environment” photos of their home or property. Consent is documented in a contact

note. Consent is not required to take a photo of a youth in care assigned to his/her caseload.

c) Intact Family Service Cases. An Intact Family Worker must ask a parent or legal

guardian for verbal consent to take an “identification”, “condition” or “home/environment”

photo. Consent shall be documented in a contact note.

ADMINISTRATIVE PROCEDURE #31

Taking and Uploading Case Photos in SACWIS and A.S.K. Mobile App

September 29, 2020 – PT 2020.16

Administrative Procedure #31 – (4)

Section 31.7 Use of Photos in Documentation

a) Child Protection Specialists

Photos of a child’s injuries may be taken and used to support the descriptive documentation

contained on the CANTS 2A or 2B. Photos shall never be used as a substitute for

completing the CANTS 2A or 2B.

To ensure the confidentiality of case information, Department and POS casework

staff should take photos using the A.S.K. app.

When the parent/guardian is available, the Child Protection Specialist shall notify the

parent/guardian that the Department has the right to obtain photos. This notification may

be provided by phone and shall be documented in a contact note.

A Child Protection Specialist shall take an identification photo of each child taken into

protective custody as soon as possible after the child has been removed from the home.

The Child Protection Specialist may take or obtain photos of the alleged child victim and

the child's environment as a part of the investigative process. Photos shall be taken as a

part of gathering inculpatory and exculpatory evidence of abuse or neglect or the lack of

abuse or neglect.

Photos can be used to document a child's injuries or the absence of injuries. When taking

photos of a child, the Child Protection Specialist must ensure that the safeguards described

in Procedures 300.150(c)(5), Observation of the Alleged Victim are followed.

If the alleged child victim is in the hospital, the Child Protection Specialist shall request

assistance from hospital staff in obtaining photos of the child’s injuries and/or acquire

photos of the child taken by hospital staff.

When a child is screened into court but protective custody was not taken, the Child

Protection Specialist or Intact Family Worker screening the child into court shall take an

initial identification photo of the child.

Photos taken by a Child Protection Specialist shall be uploaded into the SACWIS

investigative file within 48 hours of taking the photo.

When uploading a photo, the Child Protection Specialist shall enter the descriptive

information in Section 31.4, Labeling Photos about each photo in the “Description” field.

During the handoff staffing, the Child Protection Specialist shall provide the Permanency

Worker with the child’s identification photo.

b) Permanency Workers

To ensure the confidentiality of case information, Department and POS casework

staff should take photos using the A.S.K. app.

ADMINISTRATIVE PROCEDURE #31

Taking and Uploading Case Photos in SACWIS and A.S.K. Mobile App

September 29, 2020 – PT 2020.16

Administrative Procedure #31 – (5)

The Permanency Worker shall update the child’s identification photo in the SACWIS case

annually or sooner if the child’s appearance has significantly changed. (See Procedures

301.150, Identification Procedures for Children in Placement.)

Example: The child just added homemade tattoos (describe) to her face and

changed her hair color.

Condition and home/environment photos may be uploaded and used as needed in

placement cases. When appropriate, the Permanency Worker may take an identification or

condition photo of the child or a photo documenting the condition of the home or

environment.

When appropriate and with consent of a parent or guardian, the Permanency Worker may

take an identification or condition photo of a non-youth in care with connection to the case

(e.g., living in home of parent; sibling of youth in care living with non-parent).

When appropriate and with appropriate consent, the Permanency Worker may take an

identification or condition photo of the parent or another adult with connection to the case

(e.g., household member), or a photo documenting the condition of the home or

environment.

** When an injury to a child or an unsanitary or unsafe condition of the home or

environment requires a call to SCR, and Call Floor Worker states that a report is

being taken, the assigned Child Protection Specialist will photograph the child or

scene as part of the investigation.

When uploading the photo, the Permanency Worker shall enter the descriptive information

in Section 31.4, Labeling Photos about each photo in the “Description” field.

The Permanency Worker remains responsible to thoroughly document his/her observations

in a contact note. The ability to take and upload these photos in the case record does not

change that requirement.

c) Intact Family Workers

When completing each CERAP safety assessment and with consent of the parent or

guardian, the Intact Family Worker shall take an identification or condition photo of a child

or adult and, if applicable a photo documenting the condition of the home or environment

in open intact cases. The Intact Family Worker shall update an identification photo of each

child in the family in the SACWIS case record.

To ensure the confidentiality of case information, Department and POS casework

staff should take photos using the A.S.K. app.

Condition and Home/Environment photos may be uploaded and used as needed in intact

family cases.

ADMINISTRATIVE PROCEDURE #31

Taking and Uploading Case Photos in SACWIS and A.S.K. Mobile App

September 29, 2020 – PT 2020.16

Administrative Procedure #31 – (6)

** When an injury to a child or an unsanitary or unsafe condition of the home or

environment requires a call to SCR, and Call Floor Worker states that a report is

being taken, the assigned Child Protection Specialist will photograph the child or

scene as part of the investigation.

When uploading the photo, the Intact Family Worker shall enter the descriptive information

in Section 31.4, Labeling Photos about each photo in the “Description” field.

The Intact Family Worker remains responsible to thoroughly document his/her

observations in a contact note. The ability to take and upload these photos in the case

record does not change that requirement.

Section 31.8 Emailing Photos

When emailing case and investigation photos from SACWIS to authorized external recipients,

#ILEncrypt# will automatically appear in the subject line of the email. When #ILEncrypt# is in

the Subject line of any Outlook email, it triggers the encryption service.

DCFS and POS workers should not remove #ILEncrypt# from the subject line.

The sending DCFS and POS workers will receive a read receipt and automated notifications when

an email is opened or when an email expires. The recipient will receive a special message to log

into our system with secure credentials to review the message. The message will be available on

the server for 2 years.

ADMINISTRATIVE PROCEDURE #31

Taking and Uploading Case Photos in SACWIS and A.S.K. Mobile App

September 29, 2020 – PT 2020.16

Administrative Procedure #31 – (7)

Appendix A - Tips for Taking High Quality Photos with a Smart Phone

a) iPhone-specific Photo Tips

1) Snap photos with the volume up button

Did you know that when you’re taking photos with your iPhone, the shutter doesn’t

release until you remove your finger from the button? Combined with the slim size

of your phone and the way you hold it to get a good shot, that makes for a good

amount of camera shake, resulting in blurry photos. Here is an easy solution. Your

iPhone's volume up button acts as an additional camera shutter.

2) Use the iPhone camera shortcut for quick access

To conveniently access the camera, swipe up from the bottom of the screen to

launch Control Center and tap on the Camera button.

3) Turn off your flash

Recent generations of the iPhone flash are much better than their predecessors but

at the end of the day, the flash is still just an LED light and it can occasionally emit

a strange hue onto your photographs. One of the easiest ways to get better pictures

is to light your subject well. With phones, this typically requires turning off the

flash. This isn’t always an option - sometimes the setting is too dark to not use a

flash. Generally, the flash tends to be too harsh and results in blown out

(overexposed) photos or bright spots on people’s faces.

To get better lighting, try framing your photo with your iPhone and then tapping

the area where your subject appears. This helps your phone assess optimum

lighting around your subject.

4) Slide the exposure meter to brighten or darken photos

If you're shooting at night or in rooms that are not well-lit, use the Camera app's

exposure slider to boost light in the photo.

To find the exposure slider: launch the Camera app from your Home screen or

Lock screen. Tap anywhere on the live preview in order to bring up the focus point

(a yellow box). Tap and hold on the “exposure button” that appears next to the

yellow box. (In the photos below, it looks like a Sun to the right of the yellow box.)

A slider bar will appear that allows you to slide the Sun up and down to adjust the

exposure.

ADMINISTRATIVE PROCEDURE #31

Taking and Uploading Case Photos in SACWIS and A.S.K. Mobile App

September 29, 2020 – PT 2020.16

Administrative Procedure #31 – (8)

Enlarged view of yellow box and Sun

5) Understand HDR Auto

Your iPhone comes with a software feature called High Dynamic Range, or HDR:

This lets you snap photos that may have high contrast light sources (a TV powered

on in the foreground of a darkened living room) and still capture a nice image

without distorting either the light or the dark area of the picture. Your iPhone

automatically does this by snapping several pictures in quick succession at different

exposures, then merging them together to create a unified image.

HDR uses information from your iPhone's sensor as you point your device at a

subject to determine when an image might need HDR correction, and only then

does it turn on HDR mode. You'll know HDR is enabled by the yellow "HDR" box

that appears at the top or bottom of the screen. This can save storage space on your

device and prevents shooting HDR unnecessarily.

iPhones with iOS 8 and later feature HDR Auto.

ADMINISTRATIVE PROCEDURE #31

Taking and Uploading Case Photos in SACWIS and A.S.K. Mobile App

September 29, 2020 – PT 2020.16

Administrative Procedure #31 – (9)

b) Photo Tips for all Smart Phone Users

1) Clean the lens!

Clean the glass that covers the camera just like you would the screen around front.

A microfiber cloth is good for wiping away fingerprints and body oils, or you can

use a cleaning fluid designed for electronic screens.

2) Steady Yourself!

Try leaning against a hard object (like a wall) when taking a photo to reduce

shaking.

3) Use the light you have correctly

Never point your camera at the light. Try to have the lighting behind you and above

you, ideally pointing towards whatever it is you're taking a picture of. That's not

always possible (especially indoors) but you should still move your feet and try the

best angle you can use if possible.

Some Android cameras do better with less light than others, but you still need some

illumination. And use light to your advantage. Try shooting photos in areas with

adequate natural lighting sources.

4) Don't use the zoom

Your smart phone camera has no optical (using the lens) zoom. Instead, when you

use the zoom feature, it's doing the same thing as blowing an image up in an editor

and cropping out the edge. This generally makes for grainy, pixelated pictures that

are sub-par.

If you need to get a closer view of that thing your photographing, moving closer to

it is always better than using your zoom.

5) Resist using the flash

Camera flash in smart phones is getting better, but flash is still best left turned off

or used for a flashlight. Flash sits too close to the sensor and creates harsh, washed

out pictures.

Sometimes you must use it, and sometimes it works fine, but most times you won’t

like what you see when you use it.

6) Capture Close-Up Detail

One of the biggest photography mistakes is not getting close enough to the subject.

This is particularly important when photographing objects with intricate details.

Moving in close is also a good technique to use with portrait photos. Getting close

ADMINISTRATIVE PROCEDURE #31

Taking and Uploading Case Photos in SACWIS and A.S.K. Mobile App

September 29, 2020 – PT 2020.16

Administrative Procedure #31 – (10)

lets you capture your subject’s facial features and emotions. This gives your

portrait photos far more impact.

7) Take Several Photos

Don’t be afraid to take multiple photos to get a good one. No one can replicate the

same circumstances so it’s essential to capture that moment of time. Upload the

photo that best depicts the person or environment and delete the rest.