Computer Forensics Dilian Kovatchev & Daniel Leitch

Daily importance Computer forensics are an important part of legal proceedings because they help document, process, and interpret evidence, so that it may be validly used in a court trial. Computer forensics are mainly used to protect the civil liberties of citizens, but they are also important in the analysis of various data and also for the cross-referencing of different items or substances.

Major examples Identity theft- Joseph Kidd, an ex-con, posed as a certain Larry Smith from Florida since 1993, but the real Larry found out that he had been using his identity as a means of living life. So, the authorities used computer forensics to track the medicare bills of Kidd and to what address they were being sent, until they finally caught him red handed using Smith’s identity.

Major example Governmental/ Monetary fraud- Bernie Madoff’s Ponzi scheme went wrong after he tried to steal billions of private and corporate money using a false investment fund for a false institution/purpose. Authorities captured him by tracing the transactions and filings in his bank account and how money was being wired into and out of it. Eventually, the money just did not add up and Madoff was caught stealing from the federal government and taxpayers.

AFIS scans/referencing A common use for computer forensics is the cross reference of samples. AFIS is the national database for fingerprints, which can be used as standard references against unknown examples. First the fingerprints must be collected using the various techniques available to forensic scientists, after which they are sent to the laboratory for analysis.

AFIS After the fingerprints are received at the laboratory, they are scanned into a powerful computer, which plugs them into the AFIS system and searches for similar prints. Once a match, or what appears to be a match, is found, the technician requests that the fingerprints are sent to him and analyzes them for similarities and differences.

Diagrams

Citations "CyberSecurity Institute: What Is Computer Forensics?." CyberSecurity Institute: World Class Computer Forensics Services and Training. tm (accessed May 31, 2011). tm "Computer Forensics World." Computer Forensics World. (accessed May 31, 2011).