Digital Forensic Investigator : An Effective Practice For The Digital Forensics

What potential sources of digital evidence do you find at a crime scene? First of all, what is digital evidence? Digital evidence is any information or data of value to an investigation that is stored on, received by, or transmitted by an electronic device. Also, Digital evidence or electronic evidence is any probative information stored or transmitted in digital form that a party to a court case may use at trial. Text messages, emails, pictures and videos, and internet searches are some of the most common types of digital evidence. Most criminals now leave a digital trail;

The Internet is one of the greatest creations of our time. It has so many different uses and resources that almost everyone could find some use for it in their life. This is especially true for people in a computer-related field, such as Information Technology, and Software Development. For example, search engines can be used to help find solutions to problems or questions that one could have about software development. Another example is Wikis, websites that allow collaborative modifications directly from the browser to share information, such as Wikipedia. All of these sites and more can be accessed through browsers, software applications that are used to access the Web. The most common and updated browsers include: Firefox,

Improvements in technology have demonstrated that with relative ease nefarious individuals can acquire various types of information with the use of computers, cellphones, tablets, databases and the internet. This information can be used for a large array of deeds, illegal activity being a major one. In an effort to combat this emerging type of crime, the Department of Justice, local law enforcement agencies, banks, retail stores, and investment firms are integrating computer forensics into their organizations. These crimes range from network security breaches at companies like Target and Home Depot to child pornography, the common thread is that the implicating evidence was found on an electronic media device.

One service provided by computer forensics includes electronic discovery. This is where documents, email, intellectual property, trade secrets, copyright issues, databases, internet activity, instant messaging, computer security and network intrusion are all examined and determined what information might be valuable to a case or situation. This area is used when a client has knowledge of what information is on the computer, or other device, and needs help in guiding them

In current era, majority of large enterprises rely heavily over the usage of technology in operations and other segments of the business. With the increased reliance and usage of technology, the risk of cyber crime becomes also more serious in case of occurrence. To counter this risk, digital forensic investigation firms provide assistance in conducting the forensic analysis after occurrence of any cyber crime. With the passage of time, the forensic investigation process has also modified and distributed into different phases to make this investigation more effective. Every phase has its own impact over the process of investigation.

To conclude with my case study, is worth to mention that in every forensic investigation is different and the circumstances and particularity of the case will conduct to the right forensic tools needed. Before start conducting a case every forensic investigator should gather how much information as possible from the suspected person or target system. In this case I focused my attention on my client's background information and technical knowledge of computer resources as well as security policies of her company and habits of usage. For all these reasons identifying the nature of the case before conducting any investigation will set the path and guide me in the selection of the best course of action to implement the right tools in my

This thesis aims to determine what attorneys consider to be the three most important characteristics of an expert witness from law enforcement digital forensics personnel. The analysis of digital evidence and court testimony of a digital investigator will be heard by a jury and thus will have a part in that jury’s determination of the guilt or innocence of the person who is accused of a crime. Offenses ranging from misdemeanors to capital crimes such as murder could possibly be involved, with sentences ranging from probation to the death penalty in Alabama. The testimony of the person who collects, examines, and reports on the evidence in a case can literally make the difference between life and death for the defendant. The qualifications of the witness giving testimony about digital forensic evidence are of supreme importance.

In a world where technology is increasingly becoming the way of life, it was only a matter of time before crime was no longer just in the streets but happening online as well. Criminals now get a new approach to carry out their crimes with the use of computers. Since technology is more like a murder mystery than catching the bad guy in the act, a new discipline of forensics needed to be put into place. This is known as computer forensics. Forensic science is any science used for the purpose of law. In the case of computer forensics it is “the discipline that combines elements of law and computer science to collect and analyze data from computer systems, networks, wireless communications, and storage devices in a way that is admissible as evidence in a court of law” (U.S. Cert, 2008). Meaning if you do something illegal on the Internet it can be found.

A computer forensics expert can recover information and computer evidence even if it has been hidden, encrypted, or deleted. In computer forensics, time is of the essence and an investigation must be performed in a timely manner to prevent information from disappearing forever. An important aspect of a computer forensic investigation is that the computer forensics expert must be capable of performing the analysis in a manner that will preserve, identify, extract, document and interpret computer data. The computer forensics analysis must be performed in a manner that conforms with legal requirements so that the results of the forensics investigation will be admissible in court. Simply powering up a computer can result in many files being changed. This may affect the admissibility and reliability of digital evidence. The analysis of electronic evidence includes not only the analysis of documents currently in a computer and those that were previously deleted, but also past versions and alterations of electronically stored documents.

ABSTRACT: digital forensics is the procedure of revealing and understanding electronic information. The objective of the procedure is to protect any confirmation in its most unique structure while collecting so as to perform an organized examination, recognizing and approving the advanced data. Digital evidence is not only used for electronic crimes but also used to accuse any type of crime. The goal of digital forensic analysis is to find evidence for an investigation. This paper gives summary of digital forensics, and also the processes, and uses in digital forensics involved investigations. This paper also reviews the tools used for digital forensics in today’s world.

Computer crimes present exorbitant issues in today's society. With computer security crimes on the rise, it is becoming e crucial for law enforcement officers and digital forensic examiners to understand computer forensic efficiently and effectively. It has become critical for law enforcement and digital forensic analysts to comprehend computer frameworks productively and adequately as cybercrimes continue to rise as society relies upon the usage of technology. Assessments of information system incidents can be reviewed and evaluated through forensic methodologies. The essential the methodologies presented in digital forensic process model will ensure my forensic team identify potential digital evidence on any type of electrical gadget.

The term digital forensics was initially utilized as an equivalent word for computer forensics however has extended to cover examination of all gadgets fit for storing digital data. Digital forensics examinations have a mixture of application. The most widely recognized is to negate a speculation before criminal or courts. The technical part of an examination is separated into a few sub-branches, identifying with the kind of digital gadgets included such as computer forensics, network forensics, forensic data analysis and mobile device forensics. The common forensic procedure incorporates the seizure, measurable forensic imaging and investigation of digital media and the generation of a report into gathered evidence.

In order to access the web, one must utilize a tool called a web browser. “World Wide Web browser software, such as Microsoft 's Internet Explorer and Google Chrome, lets users navigate from one web page to another via hyperlinks embedded in the documents. These documents may also contain any combination of computer data, including graphics, sounds, text, video, multimedia and interactive content that runs while the user is interacting with the page. Client-side software can include animations, games, office applications and scientific demonstrations. Through keyword-driven Internet research using search engines like Yahoo! and Google, users worldwide have easy, instant access to a vast and diverse amount of online information. Compared to printed media, books, encyclopedias and traditional libraries, the World Wide Web has enabled the decentralization of information on a large scale (author unknown, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internet).” This more formal explanation of how the web works now opens the door to a detailed discussion on the concept of what URL means.

The dawn of the computer age brought with it new and exciting ways to improve our daily routines. Unfortunately, that also brought with it the dawn of a new technological criminal age that would vigorously pursue ways to exploit email, the internet, mobile devices, personal identifiable information (PII), and etc. Information technology experts have done their best to counter these threats; however, in some cases, the criminal triumphs, which may or may not lead to them being caught by an expert cyber forensics team. Cyber forensics teams must carefully consider their terms, limitations, protocols and procedures in collecting evidence. Computer related incidents or crimes increases daily and it is imperative that law experts understand how to obtain this information off of electronic devices.

<br>The Internet?s popularity has dramatically escalated over the past few years and has become an integral part of daily life. It has wide spread uses ranging from, obtaining information, downloading files, business advertisement to Internet commerce, which plays a major part in Internet practice. Our social structure is pressuring society to connect to the Internet, with schools world wide becoming more Web based and universities now have lectures, which can be solely viewed over the Internet. Within the next few years the potential and capabilities of the Internet are endless. With that in mind the following assignment will examine a