Digital Forensics

Comprehensive guide to digital evidence collection, preservation, and analysis. Learn about forensic methodologies, tools, and legal procedures for cyber investigations.

Evidence Collection
Forensic Analysis
Legal Procedures
Chain of Custody

Evidence Collection & Preservation

Proper procedures for collecting and preserving digital evidence.

Chain of Custody

Documentation

Detailed records, timestamps, signatures

Evidence Tracking

Unique identifiers, custody logs, transfer records

Integrity Verification

Hash verification, digital signatures, tamper detection

Secure Storage

Evidence lockers, access controls, environmental controls

Live Forensics

Volatile Data Collection

Memory acquisition, running processes, network connections

Order of Volatility

CPU registers, cache, RAM, swap files, hard drives

Live Response

Incident response, evidence preservation, system stabilization

Network Forensics

Packet capture, traffic analysis, network artifacts

Forensic Analysis Techniques

Methods and tools for analyzing digital evidence.

File System Analysis

File Systems

NTFS, FAT, ext4, HFS+, APFS

File Carving

Recovery of deleted files, file signature analysis

Timeline Analysis

File timestamps, event correlation, activity reconstruction

Metadata Analysis

File attributes, creation dates, modification times

Memory Forensics

Memory Acquisition

Physical memory dumps, hibernation files, crash dumps

Process Analysis

Running processes, process injection, malware detection

Network Analysis

Network connections, sockets, communication channels

Artifact Recovery

Passwords, encryption keys, browser artifacts

Mobile & Cloud Forensics

Specialized techniques for mobile devices and cloud environments.

Mobile Device Forensics

iOS Forensics

iPhone analysis, iTunes backups, iCloud data

Android Forensics

ADB access, app data, system logs

App Analysis

Social media apps, messaging, location data

Encryption Challenges

Device encryption, app-level encryption, key extraction

Cloud Forensics

Cloud Platforms

AWS, Azure, Google Cloud, SaaS applications

API Analysis

Cloud logs, API calls, authentication records

Jurisdiction Issues

Data location, legal requirements, cross-border issues

Data Preservation

Legal holds, data retention, evidence preservation

Tools & Legal Procedures

Essential tools and legal considerations for digital forensics.

Forensic Tools

  • • EnCase
  • • FTK
  • • Autopsy
  • • X-Ways Forensics
  • • Cellebrite

Memory Analysis

  • • Volatility
  • • Rekall
  • • WinDbg
  • • Memoryze
  • • DumpIt

Legal Considerations

  • • Search warrants
  • • Expert testimony
  • • Evidence admissibility
  • • Legal compliance
  • • Report writing