Essay on Computer Forensics in the Twenties

By definition, computer forensics is the practice of collecting, making the analysis and also reporting on digital data in a legally admissible way. In the modern day today, for instance, the knowledge and expertise of computer forensics are particularly used in a vast range of fields such as detection and prevention of crime, government intelligence or even in solving disputes on occasions where evidence is stored digitally. Particularly, since the 90s, the goal of computer forensics has been to examine and analyze digital media in a forensically sound manner and also with the intentions of identifying preserving and analyzing the facts and opinions relating to digital information. This being the case, the core intent of this essay is to discuss the evolution of computer forensics concerning the role it plays in the modern day today.

Firstly, according to modern day literature, the computer forensic field is considered one of the newest disciplines in the overall forensic science field. More specifically, the evolution of computer forensics has substantially been influenced by technological advancement and like other modern day disciplines, it is going through an evolution process in which case it transitions from being an art that is merely practiced by individuals to a more standardized set of techniques with the best practices. According to Brill et al. (2006), the history of computer forensics can particularly be traced back to the 1970s. However, it was not until the mid-1990s that many criminologists and crime scene investigators trained in the field of computer forensics and joined the newly formed International Organization on Computer Evidence (IOCE). Based on the role played by computer forensics today, it is evident that the field has rapidly grown to the extent where modern day law enforcement personnel are trained in the cybercrime field as well as internet investigative techniques. Additionally, changes in computer forensics are also seen in the fact that in the past, the use of computer forensic expertise was only limited to the law enforcement divisions and investigators which are not the case today. Particularly, in todays growing technological advancements, computer forensic tools have become available for public use and hence the modern day clear-cut definition of computer forensics as a field that basically involves recovering data from hard drives or even floppy disks.

Besides, with reference to the current role played by computer forensics, studies show that as a discipline, cyber forensics is rapidly increasing in importance particularly for the law enforcement community for various reasons. For instance, one of the primary reasons why the law enforcement community is particularly advancing their computer forensics know how is owing to the fact that computers and the internet represent some of the fastest growing technology tools currently used by criminals (Kishore, Gupta & Dawar, 2014). This being the case, the government alongside investigative agencies have combined forensic difficulties of compression, password protection, encryption, and steganography, among others to the overall investigative process.

On the other hand, in the modern day today, computer forensics plays a significant role in the digital crime industry. Unlike in the past, computer and digital forensics in the twenties serve as essential tools used for solving digital offenses such as bank fraud, phishing, among others. In a similar regard, the evolution of computer forensic expertise has enabled it possible for the police alongside other law enforcement agencies to solve crimes against people where evidence may reside on computers (Ismail Al, 2014). Some examples of these crimes are such as child exploitation and money laundering. Today, in the twenties, computer forensics has become an essential tool that is also used in analyzing evidence and also solving cases. For the police agencies, for instance, the computer forensics expertise has brought about great success not only in tracking the criminals but also in assisting the victims. For instance one of the digital crime cases that have overly been simplified by the evolution of computer forensics is the child pornography cases. As evidenced by modern day studies, before the widespread and increased use of computer forensic expertise, it is hard to track trafficking in child pornography, and for this reason, convictions of the perpetrators were rare. However, although many would argue that the increased use of the internet in the twenties has dramatically increased and facilitated the creation, as well as the distribution of child pornography, the increase in computer forensics know-how, has in turn given the police the ability to not only detect but also track these cases (Kelly, 2013).

Other than the cases in child pornography, phishing is another very common digital crime case experienced in the modern day today. More specifically, the year 2016 was characterized by many phishing attacks. One of this cases involved a digital criminal who posed as the Snapchat CEO after which they requested sensitive payroll information about the employees of the payroll department. In a similar regard, in 2005, a single computer file was forensically examined after which it provided a key piece of information used for the arrest BTK killer in Wichita, Kansas. In this particular case, the 30-year serial murder spree of the BTK killer was dramatically stopped by a mere oversight on his part. After the killer had sent an email letter to a Wichita television station, through the use of digital forensics, the police examined the file and linked it to the author who went by the name Dennis Rader and used it to his arrest.

With regard to the future of computer forensics, the twenties have marked a rapid evolution phase in both computer and internet use. As more users utilize interconnected devices and go mobile, computers through computer forensics, have often come at the center of incidents and investigations. Today, thanks to computer forensic skills and expertise, it has become easier to gather evidence for discussion in the court of law since a majority of the computer forensic experts can extract crucial data from computers and electronic devices that belong to those affected. As a matter of fact, in court testimonies, computer forensic analysts who are specialized in e-discovery bring forward testimonies that are used as evidence in the court of law. Similarly, although the future advancement of digital forensics has increased police and law enforcement intelligence, it is evident that this also advances the knowledge of the digital crime perpetrators. In the future, it is expected that there will be the development of anti-forensic schemes and tools which will be used by even more sophisticated hackers. This, in essence, will see the development of software that will be used to tamper with an investigation by scrambling or erasing traces of wrong doings.

Additionally, owing to the fact that computer forensics has rapidly grown from a relative obscure tradecraft into an essential part of modern day investigations, its future is overly bright. Besides, the development of computer forensic tools as well as processes have been successful, over the past couple of decades. This has significantly been evidenced by the fact that a majority of the people in different leadership and investigative positions now rely on these tools on a regular basis. In this regard, scholars in the forensic field predict that in the future, the role of computer forensics in crime will overly increase in demand owing to the fact that the increase in the need for assistance in retrieving information which can be used as evidence is becoming overly difficult for the law enforcement. Also, in the future, the role of computer forensics is expected to increase as more databases are being introduced to hold case files for the law enforcement agencies (Crane, 2013). With this, various innovations will be put to place so as to help in changing the efficiency and the face of criminal investigation as a whole.

In conclusion, the development and evolution of computer forensics over the last 25 years has signaled a significant change in the modern day law enforcement. With the advancement in technology, many agencies are in a position to increase the efficiency of the digital crimes and also closure rates. This being the case, the evolvement of computer forensics today in the twenties has seen to it that all law enforcement officers have a basic level understanding of computer forensics at the very least. Thus, in a nutshell, computer forensics have become an integral part of the law enforcement and investigation agencies in the new millennium.

References

Brill, A. E., Pollitt, M., & Morgan Whitcomb, C. (2006). The Evolution of Computer Forensic Best Practices: An Update on Programs and Publications. Journal of Digital Forensic Practice, 1(1), 3-11. doi:10.1080/15567280500541488

Crane, B. (2013, November 11). Digital Forensics: A Decade of Changes - Technology - POLICE Magazine. Retrieved from http://www.policemag.com/blog/technology/story/2013/11/digital-forensics-a-decade-of-changes.aspx

Ismail Al-, A. (2014). Cybercrimes, Computer Forensics and their Impact in Business Climate: Bahrain Status. Research Journal of Business Management, 8(3), 139-156. doi:10.3923/rjbm.2014.139.156

Kelly, K. (2013). Computer Forensics from a Law Enforcement Perspective. Advances in Cyber Security, 4(7), 188-199. doi:10.5422/fordham/9780823244560.003.0010

Kishore, N., Gupta, C., & Dawar, D. (2014). An Insight View of Digital Forensics. International Journal on Computational Science & Applications, 4(6), 89-96. doi:10.5121/ijcsa.2014.4608