The techniques used to perpetuate crime by fraudsters and other criminals have morphed dramatically over the years. Today, computers are avenues through which criminals steal money from bank accounts, perpetuate identity theft and infiltrate private networks. Computer forensic investigation is more of a reactive step to these problems.
Many people are under the impression that data in a PC becomes irretrievable once it is deleted. Most criminals who are new to cyber crime often erase the data from their computers falsely believing that their digital footprints have been completely erased. However, there is always a way to retrieve deleted data.
When you delete anything from your machine, it still remains in memory. The delete command is a simple instruction to the computer to free up the slot occupied by that data. Once this command is received, the data is shifted to a separate and hidden section of memory. It can still be obtained using a set of techniques and specialty software.
A forensic investigator is likely to spend most of his time poring over hard drives. This is the case especially for those working for the police. A hard drive obtained from the PC of a Fraudster can be a treasure trove of evidence that can help prosecute him and others in his network.
Contrary to what many believe, fraud is not the only type of cyber crime. Another common crime is child pornography. By picking the hidden parts of PC memory, investigators can uncover lots of evidence that can help put a child sex offender behind bars.
Forensic investigations also play a big role in promoting transparency in financial aspects of the corporate sector. In some companies, rogue employees occasionally alter their accounting software with a view to defrauding the tax authorities. System audits usually help uncover foul play in such situations.
In the aforementioned case, all that an investigator would have to do is retrieve original copies of financial data and compare it with what has been reported by the accounting software. This process may take weeks or months depending on the amount of data involved. The end results are always accurate nonetheless.
An IT specialist who majors in forensics may be called upon to serve as an expert witness in court proceedings. In such a scenario, the work of the specialist is to give the court a professional account of how a crime may have been committed. If you would like to venture into this career, the sky is the limit.
PC theft is one of the easiest crimes to solve. All PCs in the market have unique identifiers that buyers can refer to when proving ownership. Most of the stolen computers being resold usually come without their unique identifiers. By reconstructing the memory partitions in stolen computers to their original form, law enforcers can easily ascertain ownership.
Forensics is a growing field and is one of the best weapons that the police have against modern day crooks. If you hope to get into it someday, you should enroll for a technology course like computer science. You may also take a certificate course in forensics to get the skills required for the job.
Many people are under the impression that data in a PC becomes irretrievable once it is deleted. Most criminals who are new to cyber crime often erase the data from their computers falsely believing that their digital footprints have been completely erased. However, there is always a way to retrieve deleted data.
When you delete anything from your machine, it still remains in memory. The delete command is a simple instruction to the computer to free up the slot occupied by that data. Once this command is received, the data is shifted to a separate and hidden section of memory. It can still be obtained using a set of techniques and specialty software.
A forensic investigator is likely to spend most of his time poring over hard drives. This is the case especially for those working for the police. A hard drive obtained from the PC of a Fraudster can be a treasure trove of evidence that can help prosecute him and others in his network.
Contrary to what many believe, fraud is not the only type of cyber crime. Another common crime is child pornography. By picking the hidden parts of PC memory, investigators can uncover lots of evidence that can help put a child sex offender behind bars.
Forensic investigations also play a big role in promoting transparency in financial aspects of the corporate sector. In some companies, rogue employees occasionally alter their accounting software with a view to defrauding the tax authorities. System audits usually help uncover foul play in such situations.
In the aforementioned case, all that an investigator would have to do is retrieve original copies of financial data and compare it with what has been reported by the accounting software. This process may take weeks or months depending on the amount of data involved. The end results are always accurate nonetheless.
An IT specialist who majors in forensics may be called upon to serve as an expert witness in court proceedings. In such a scenario, the work of the specialist is to give the court a professional account of how a crime may have been committed. If you would like to venture into this career, the sky is the limit.
PC theft is one of the easiest crimes to solve. All PCs in the market have unique identifiers that buyers can refer to when proving ownership. Most of the stolen computers being resold usually come without their unique identifiers. By reconstructing the memory partitions in stolen computers to their original form, law enforcers can easily ascertain ownership.
Forensics is a growing field and is one of the best weapons that the police have against modern day crooks. If you hope to get into it someday, you should enroll for a technology course like computer science. You may also take a certificate course in forensics to get the skills required for the job.
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