Why Computer Forensics Is Important

Computer forensics is a branch of forensic science which deals with the application of investigative analysis techniques on computers in order to retrieve and preserve evidence in a way that is legally admissible. This means that a major aspect of the science of computer forensics lies in the ability of the forensics expert to present findings in a way that is acceptable and usable by a court of law.

The goal of computer forensics is the performance of a structured investigation on a computing device to find out either what happened or who was responsible for what happened, while at the same time maintaining a properly documented chain of evidence in a formal report.

Computer forensics is an integral and necessary tool in the fight against cybercrime.

According to the U.S. Department of Justice (the “DoJ”), the term cybercrime refers to any illegal activity for which a computer is used as its primary means of commission, transmission, or storage and the term has rapidly gained acceptance in New Zealand. The list of criminal activities made possible by the widespread use of computers has grown exponentially in recent decades, and includes such acts as dissemination of computer viruses, network intrusion, identity theft, and even cyberbullying, stalking and terrorism.

While computer forensics may have been used traditionally by law enforcement organizations like the police in the fight against crime, there are presently many different areas of its application, as private and commercial organizations have adopted its use for a multitude of purposes.

It is therefore the merging of computer-data recovery methods with rules and guidelines from the legal system in order to produce a legally acceptable audit trail.

Computer forensic methods started to be used for collecting digital evidence for courts in the mid 1980s with the emergence and rapid growth in the use of personal computers by individuals and firms. Over the years, as the use of personal computers increased and became even more widespread, cybercrime or computer related crimes have also increased and become even more diverse.

The uses for computer forensics are varied. They range from helping law enforcement officials in the investigation of child pornography, to investigating fraud, murder, espionage, rape and cyber-stalking. In the private sector, computer forensics has been used by commercial organizations to investigate a wide range of cases including industrial espionage, fraud, intellectual property theft, forgeries, disputes with employees, regulatory compliance, bankruptcies and for the inappropriate use of a computer, Internet and email in the work place.

The theft of intellectual property is now arguably the most prevalent example of cybercrime in New Zealand

The discipline ... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=67zAbETSYok