- "Computer forensics (also known as computer forensic science) is a branch of digital forensic science pertaining to evidence found in computers and digital storage media."
Techniques to identify and investigate cybercrime incidents.
Cybercrime: The study of cybercrime includes understanding different types of attacks, common vulnerabilities, and typical targets of cybercriminals. It also covers the legal area of punishment for cybercrimes.
Cybersecurity: Cybersecurity deals with the protection of sensitive data and systems from cyber-attacks. In this topic, one would learn about various security measures and tools that can be used to secure electronic systems and data.
Digital Forensics: This covers the process of investigating and analyzing computer systems and electronic devices following a computer crime or cyber-attack. Digital forensics involves collecting and analyzing evidence to support criminal prosecution or civil litigation.
Incident Response: Incident response involves responding to security incidents swiftly and efficiently to prevent further damage. It includes identifying the severity of the incident, managing communication, and executing the response plan.
Network Forensics: Network forensics involves investigating the network activity of a device or system to help uncover information about the origin and source of an attack. This analysis requires knowledge of network protocols.
Cryptography: This is the study of secure communication techniques that help prevent unauthorized access of data when transmitted from one location to another.
Cyber Threat Intelligence: Cyber threat intelligence involves analyzing data about cyber threats to identify patterns and trends in cyber-attacks. This information is then used to improve cyber defenses and prepare against future attacks.
Risk Management: Risk management involves identifying, assessing, and prioritizing risks related to a particular system or network. Based on the risk assessment, appropriate countermeasures can be implemented to minimize potential damage.
Malware Analysis: Malware analysis involves analyzing malicious software to determine its behavior, functionality, and potential impact on a system. This analysis helps in developing effective countermeasures and forensic investigations.
Ethical Hacking: Ethical hacking involves identifying vulnerabilities and weaknesses in a system to improve its security measures. In this process, a hacker is authorized to test a company's security measures as part of the security testing process.
Cybercrime Law: Cybercrime laws govern the definition, prosecution, and punishment of cybercrimes. Cybercrime laws differ from country to country, so it is necessary to understand the laws in the jurisdiction where the investigation is taking place.
Mobile Forensics: Mobile forensics involves investigating electronic devices such as smartphones, tablets, and other handheld devices to uncover digital evidence related to a cybercrime.
DNS Analysis: DNS analysis involves investigating Domain Name System (DNS) traffic to uncover clues about malware behavior and also to identify legitimate communication pathways from other DNS domains.
Social Engineering: Social engineering involves manipulating people to obtain sensitive information or access to secure areas of a system or building. It is essential to understand the techniques involved in social engineering as they're the most difficult to defend.
Physical Security: Physical security involves securing the physical premises of an organization or building to prevent unauthorized physical access. Physical security countermeasures include CCTV, Access Controls, and Biometrics.
Cyber Insurance: Cyber Insurance is an insurance policy designed to cover financial losses incurred as a result of a cyber-attack. It covers any business liabilities, legal fees or other costs which arise due to data breaches and cyber-attacks.
Artificial intelligence in Cybercrimes and Cybersecurity: The integration of machine learning and artificial intelligence is now prevalent in the world of cybersecurity. AI is used to detect anomalies and uncover unusual activity in security logs, as well as automating security responses.
Cloud Security: Cloud security involves protecting sensitive data, applications, and infrastructure hosted in the cloud. One should learn the security models, limitations, and the unique attack vectors that come with virtualizing data and services in the cloud.
Web Application Security: Web application security involves protecting web applications against a broad range of security vulnerabilities. This includes understanding the most common types of web-based attacks, the most effective ways to protect against those attacks, and how to perform penetration testing on web applications.
Cyber Threat Hunting: Cyber threat hunting involves proactively looking for threats and stopping them before they can cause harm. It involves looking for signs of suspicious activity, analyzing data logs and behavior patterns, and identifying new and emerging threats.
Cybersecurity in emerging technologies: With the advent of emerging technologies such as IoT devices, blockchain, and quantum computing, understanding cybersecurity implications are becoming increasingly more complex. As an investigator, it's important to be aware of how digital technologies are growing, evolving and shaping new types of attacks.
Network Forensics: It is the process of examining network traffic to analyse and investigate the source and the nature of cyber attacks.
Digital Forensics: It involves the collection, preservation, investigation, analysis, and presentation of digital evidence from computers or other digital devices with the objective of finding evidence of digital crime.
Malware Analysis: It is the process of analysing malware to identify its functionality, behaviour, and structure to detect and prevent malware attacks.
Incident Response: It involves monitoring and protecting enterprise assets, detecting cyber threats, investigating, and responding to incidents to prevent or minimize damage caused by cyber attackers.
Cyber Intelligence: It comprises of information gathering, analysis and dissemination to allow organizations to identify, assess and respond to threats that are relevant to their business.
Social Engineering: It is the practice of exploiting human vulnerabilities, such as trust or naivety, to gain access to sensitive data or systems.
Cyber Law: It involves investigating, enforcing and prosecuting violations of laws related to cybercrime.
Penetration Testing: It is a simulated cyber attack carried out to test the security of a system or network.
Cryptography: It involves the creation, analysis and decryption of secret codes, which helps to protect sensitive information from unauthorized access.
Cybersecurity Risk Management: This process involves identifying, evaluating, and prioritising risks associated with cybersecurity and taking steps to mitigate them.
Cybersecurity Training: It involves providing education and training to individuals to ensure they follow cybersecurity best practices and protect against cyber threats.
- "The goal of computer forensics is to examine digital media in a forensically sound manner with the aim of identifying, preserving, recovering, analyzing and presenting facts and opinions about the digital information."
- "Although it is most often associated with the investigation of a wide variety of computer crime, computer forensics may also be used in civil proceedings."
- "The discipline involves similar techniques and principles to data recovery, but with additional guidelines and practices designed to create a legal audit trail."
- "Evidence from computer forensics investigations is usually subjected to the same guidelines and practices of other digital evidence."
- "It has been used in a number of high-profile cases."
- "It is accepted as reliable within U.S. and European court systems."
- "The focus is on conducting forensic examinations on digital media to gather evidence."
- "Forensically sound manner refers to following proper protocols and procedures to ensure the integrity and admissibility of evidence."
- "Digital media found in computers and digital storage media are analyzed in computer forensics."
- "Computer forensics may be used in civil proceedings to present facts and opinions about the digital information."
- "Computer forensics is a branch of digital forensic science."
- "The purpose is to follow guidelines and practices that ensure the evidence can be authenticated and traced back to its source."
- "Computer forensics is most often associated with the investigation of a wide variety of computer crime, but it may also be used in civil proceedings."
- "Computer forensics aims to analyze digital media and present facts and opinions about the digital information."
- "The main activities include identifying, preserving, recovering, analyzing, and presenting facts and opinions about the digital information."
- "Computer forensics involves similar techniques and principles to data recovery but includes additional guidelines and practices for creating a legal audit trail."
- "The guidelines and practices in computer forensics ensure that evidence is handled properly and can be accepted in court."
- "Evidence from computer forensics investigations is usually subjected to the same guidelines and practices of other digital evidence."
- "Computer forensics evidence is accepted as reliable within U.S. and European court systems."