Digital evidence: Overview

Digital evidence, while commencing as a capability around the 1990s, has grown remarkably quickly. Its value is no longer restricted to law enforcement investigations but is equably useful from “war room to board room”. The examination of digital evidence is also an indispensable capability in private and public sector security environments. Criminal activities in the electronic world are largely similar to those of the physical world. Criminals have access to greater abilities to obscure their conduct with the use of anonymising technology. Digital evidence, while commencing as a capability around the 1990s, has grown remarkably quickly. Its value is no longer restricted to law enforcement investigations but is equably useful from “war room to board room”. The examination of digital evidence is also an indispensable capability in private and public sector security environments. Criminal activities in the electronic world are largely similar to those of the physical world. Criminals have access to greater abilities to obscure their conduct with the use of anonymising technology. Digital evidence intelligence is becoming a priority in order to understand inter-jurisdictional criminal activity. A digital mesh is a human centered theme that refers to the collection of devices, information, apps, services, businesses and other people that exist around an individual. The future digital evidence practitioner will need to be equipped with the knowledge and skills to address forensic questions in a given case. The impact of cloud computing and the rapidly growing prevalence of Internet of Things systems continues to challenge forensic analysts and their employing organizations. However, there are deficiencies in the accuracy and the reliability of automated technologies when applied to digital evidence. The need for explainability has come under renewed focus with an increasing reliance on automated tools. The digital evidence expert’s job involves dealing with text, images, video and audio of people in distress. Workplace features can mitigate the possibility of severe stress reactions.The digital evidence expert’s job involves dealing with text, images, video and audio of people in distress. Workplace features can mitigate the possibility of severe stress reactions.