The Latest from Computer Forensics - Essay Example

Banks get robbed, and even some personnel were killed. Some rich or well-to-do people found themselves abducted for ransom. But today, theft is more insidious and even subtle. One may not realize that he or she has been a victim already.

When the Internet got into the hands of many people and that life has become intertwined with it, more and more people have become susceptible to crimes committed via the Internet, usually termed cybercrime. This paper shall survey the emerging technologies that are being used against cybercrime. In particular, we shall take a look at the developments happening in the field of computer forensics and how law-enforcement agencies are capitalizing on these. But for a start, let us examine what cybercrimes are.

Etymologically speaking, cybercrimes are crimes committed via the world-wide-web. Although no rigorous definition of it has been formulated, we can accept the common sense definition is useful. Examples of cybercrimes are “gaining unauthorized access to computer files, disrupting the operation of remote computers with viruses, worms, logic bombs, Trojan horses, and denial of service attacks; distributing and creating child pornography, stealing another's identity; selling contraband, and stalking victims” (Nesson, 2001).

Almost everyone knows about the damages inflicted by Melissa and ILOVEYOU viruses. Once in a while, a news report features the arrest of a hacker or a perpetrator of identity theft. These are not just petty crimes; they struck damage to our economy. The FBI reports an annual loss of about $ 67 Billion due to such acts (Cybercrime, 2007).

With these in mind, there must be found a way to prevent these crimes. If not, perhaps prosecution of the criminal will suffice. We should look to our law-enforcing agencies for their use of Computer Forensics. Computer Forensics is similar to the regular forensics procedures done by law enforcers, such as those seen in CSI.

Computer forensics is “a detailed and scientific study, research and implementation of computer science subjects to gather digital evidence in cases of cyber crimes or for other scientific research purposes”. In computer networks, experts use packet sniffing, IP address tracing and email address tracing (Vyavhare, 2007).

Packet sniffing is the retrieval of crucial data packets from networks. These may contain usernames or passwords used by cybercriminals.

IP addresses are unique, but sometimes criminals use proxies. The goal of IP address tracing is to trace the real IP address of the culprit.

Email tracking is used when the cybercriminal may be still in the location where a questionable email has been sent. If not, tracing the email, may provide valuable clues.

In computer systems, the computer forensics expert analyzes the file structure, checks the storage media, uses steganography (the art of concealing information in images, sounds, or any unconventional file format), and scrutinizes print-outs (Vyavhare, 2007).

File structures must be scrutinized. Upon an incident involving a cybercrime, certain files may be generated. These could contain information such as username or password. Or, perhaps these could contain other clues.

 Storage media are analyzed because even if the culprits had deleted the questionable and incriminating files, with the help of technology, these could be recovered. Although they may not be recovered fully, those fragments may be of some help.

Sometimes, culprits hide incriminating information in the least suspected places. This has made the study of steganography mandatory for computer forensics experts.