Software Engineering Principles for Forensic Integrity of Digital Forensics - Research Proposal Example

Use of Software Engineering Principles in Ensuring the Forensic Integrity of Digital Forensics Software engineering methodologies and principles have evolved over the last 50 years. Common methodologies and principles include prototyping, waterfall, spiral development, iterative and incremental development, extreme programming and rapid application. The aim of this research is to conduct a review of the software engineering methodologies and principles, and evaluate the most suitable methodology and principle in digital forensic software development. Digital forensic software development is a delicate software development process that requires an understanding of evidential standards anticipated from electronic forensic data. The methodologies and principles will be reviewed using a mixed research approach. Qualitative and quantitative research methods will be used in different stages of the study. Use of Software Engineering Principles in Ensuring the Forensic Integrity of Digital Forensics Introduction Software engineering is part of software development. It works using distinct activities or phases with the intentions of improving management and planning. Software engineering methodologies and principles include the specific artifacts and deliverables created and completed in order to maintain or develop an application. Some of the most common methodologies in software engineering are prototyping, waterfall, iterative and incremental development, rapid application development, spiral development and extreme programming (Khurana, 2007). A software development process is a set of practices, methods, transformations and actions used to affirm and obtain software and its associated products. Information technology specialists have used many software development approaches. In most of the cases, a developmental or management team prefers a combination of approaches. Traditional methodologies such as waterfall have distinct phases known as software development lifecycle. Software engineers have discussed the issue of the organization of software development in order to deliver cheap, fast and better solutions for years. The best software engineering principle and methodology is the one that provides the power to choose and react fittingly and expeditiously to various changes within its environment (Watson & Jones, 2013). The methodology should also have an ability to be imposed within its surrounding. The suitable principle or methodology should also be flexible. Research Questions 1. Which is the most suitable software engineering principle and methodology to use in digital forensic software development? 2. What is the methodology’s ability to design and evaluate the system in order to support forensic examination? Literature Review Different methodologies can be used during the software engineering process of digital forensic software. Digital forensic software helps in investigating computer crimes. The software development process of this software is a very delicate, and requires the software engineer to understand the evidential standards required of the electronic forensic data (Carrier, 2010). In addition, the software should deconstruct an attack while preserving evidence. The waterfall development approach is a sequential approach that flows steadily through several phases. In the waterfall development approach, the project is divided into phases. Some of the phases may overlap or splash back. The software developer emphasizes on planning and controlling the project’s lifespan. The waterfall approach is a traditional approach that discourages the revising or revisiting of prior phases. The prototyping approach refers to development approaches of activities conducted during software development. In this case, software development proceeds through the creation of prototypes, which are incomplete versions of required software (Agarwal & Tayal, 2009). In incremental development, different methods are used to combine iterative and linear systems. The primary objective of this methodology is the reduction of the inherent project risks. The project is broken down into small segments. This increases the ease of changing the developmental process. The iterative and incremental methodology prescribes the construction of small portions of the software project. These small portions then grow into large portions. The creation of small portions help the people involved in the process to uncover vital issues before faults and problems lead to development challenges and disasters. The spiral development approach is a formal software development methodology that combines aspects of methodologies such as rapid prototyping and the waterfall model. This methodology combines these aspects in order to combine advantages of the bottom-up and top-down concepts. The spiral methodology emphasizes on crucial areas of the software, which are neglected by other methodologies. One of these crucial areas is risk analysis, which is suited to complex and large-scale systems (Agarwal, Tayal & Gupta, 2010). The rapid application methodology favors iterative development, in addition to the rapid creation of prototypes. This method discourages the use of large amounts of up front planning. Planning the software development process using this method is interleaved with the process of writing the software. In addition, the lack of up-front planning allows the software to be written quickly. It also allows for change requirements. The agile software development methodology is a group of methodologies that are based on iterative development. In this case, solutions and requirements evolve through collaboration between cross-functional and self-organizing teams (Volonino, Anzaldua & Godwin, 2007). The code and fix methodology is a methodology where the programmer begins producing codes without planning the process (IFIP International Conference on Digital Forensics, Ray & Shenoi, 2008). This methodology is challenged by the fact that it allows for the development of bugs. Goals of the Research The primary goal of this research is to evaluate the most suitable software development methodology for a digital forensic software development. The second goal of the research is to outline the resources available during software development. The third goal of the study is to outline the advantages of using the identified software development methodology. Research Methodology The research will be conducted using the mixed research methodology. The methodology uses the qualitative and quantitative research methods to solve or research a problem. The qualitative approach focuses on content analysis of published literature while the quantitative approach focuses on surveys issued to selected software personnel. The method was selected in order to overcome the shortcomings or limitations encountered when using a single research method (Creswell & Plano, 2011). The mixed research method focuses on the research question through multi-level perspectives. Data Collection and Data Analysis Data will be collected within a period of three weeks. Data analysis will commence once all the data has been collected. The data collection methods will vary according to the data collection environment. In some of the cases, quantitative methods, which are mainly deductive, will be used. These methods are useful when measuring central patterns and phenomenon of the software development methodologies (Creswell, 2014). Conversely, qualitative methods, which are mainly inductive, will be used in the identification of known processes. These methods will also be used to collection information on how the methodologies function. Statistical methods will be used in data analysis (Tashakkori & Teddlie, 2008). These include the use of graphs and computer based statistical analysis methods such as determining measures of central tendency. Summary of Contributions This study will be conducted using a mixed research method in order to overcome the limitations experienced with the use of one research method. An analysis of the software engineering methodologies for use in a digital forensic software development will present the most suitable methodology . The research will allow a programmer to focus on critical areas of software development such as risk analysis. References Agarwal, B. B., & Tayal, S. P. (2009). Software engineering, second edition. New Delhi: Firewal Media. Agarwal, B. B., Tayal, S. P., & Gupta, M. (2010). Software engineering & testing: An introduction. Sudbury, Mass: Jones and Bartlett. Carrier, B. (2010). Software engineering methodology. S.l.: Authorhouse. Creswell, J. W. (2014). Research design: Qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods approaches. Thousand Oaks, California: SAGE Publications. Creswell, J. W., & Plano, C. V. L. (2011). Designing and conducting mixed methods research. Los Angeles: SAGE Publications. IFIP International Conference on Digital Forensics, Ray, I., & Shenoi, S. (2008). Advances in digital forensics IV. New York: Springer. Khurana, R. (2007). Software engineering: Principles and practices. New Delhi: Vikas Publication. Tashakkori, A., & Teddlie, C. (2008). Foundations of mixed methods research: Integrating quantitative and qualitative techniques in the social and behavioral sciences. London: SAGE. Volonino, L., Anzaldua, R., & Godwin, J. (2007). Computer forensics: Principles and practices. Upper Saddle River, N.J: Pearson/Prentice Hall. Watson, D., & Jones, A. (2013). Digital Forensics Processing and Procedures: Meeting the Requirements of ISO 17020, ISO 17025, ISO 27001 and Best Practice Requirements. Read More