Practical Digital Forensics


Book Description

Get started with the art and science of digital forensics with this practical, hands-on guide! About This Book Champion the skills of digital forensics by understanding the nature of recovering and preserving digital information which is essential for legal or disciplinary proceedings Explore new and promising forensic processes and tools based on 'disruptive technology' to regain control of caseloads. Richard Boddington, with 10+ years of digital forensics, demonstrates real life scenarios with a pragmatic approach Who This Book Is For This book is for anyone who wants to get into the field of digital forensics. Prior knowledge of programming languages (any) will be of great help, but not a compulsory prerequisite. What You Will Learn Gain familiarity with a range of different digital devices and operating and application systems that store digital evidence. Appreciate and understand the function and capability of forensic processes and tools to locate and recover digital evidence. Develop an understanding of the critical importance of recovering digital evidence in pristine condition and ensuring its safe handling from seizure to tendering it in evidence in court. Recognise the attributes of digital evidence and where it may be hidden and is often located on a range of digital devices. Understand the importance and challenge of digital evidence analysis and how it can assist investigations and court cases. Explore emerging technologies and processes that empower forensic practitioners and other stakeholders to harness digital evidence more effectively. In Detail Digital Forensics is a methodology which includes using various tools, techniques, and programming language. This book will get you started with digital forensics and then follow on to preparing investigation plan and preparing toolkit for investigation. In this book you will explore new and promising forensic processes and tools based on 'disruptive technology' that offer experienced and budding practitioners the means to regain control of their caseloads. During the course of the book, you will get to know about the technical side of digital forensics and various tools that are needed to perform digital forensics. This book will begin with giving a quick insight into the nature of digital evidence, where it is located and how it can be recovered and forensically examined to assist investigators. This book will take you through a series of chapters that look at the nature and circumstances of digital forensic examinations and explains the processes of evidence recovery and preservation from a range of digital devices, including mobile phones, and other media. This book has a range of case studies and simulations will allow you to apply the knowledge of the theory gained to real-life situations. By the end of this book you will have gained a sound insight into digital forensics and its key components. Style and approach The book takes the reader through a series of chapters that look at the nature and circumstances of digital forensic examinations and explains the processes of evidence recovery and preservation from a range of digital devices, including mobile phones, and other media. The mystery of digital forensics is swept aside and the reader will gain a quick insight into the nature of digital evidence, where it is located and how it can be recovered and forensically examined to assist investigators.




Digital Forensics Basics


Book Description

Use this hands-on, introductory guide to understand and implement digital forensics to investigate computer crime using Windows, the most widely used operating system. This book provides you with the necessary skills to identify an intruder's footprints and to gather the necessary digital evidence in a forensically sound manner to prosecute in a court of law. Directed toward users with no experience in the digital forensics field, this book provides guidelines and best practices when conducting investigations as well as teaching you how to use a variety of tools to investigate computer crime. You will be prepared to handle problems such as law violations, industrial espionage, and use of company resources for private use. Digital Forensics Basics is written as a series of tutorials with each task demonstrating how to use a specific computer forensics tool or technique. Practical information is provided and users can read a task and then implement it directly on their devices. Some theoretical information is presented to define terms used in each technique and for users with varying IT skills. What You’ll Learn Assemble computer forensics lab requirements, including workstations, tools, and more Document the digital crime scene, including preparing a sample chain of custody form Differentiate between law enforcement agency and corporate investigationsGather intelligence using OSINT sources Acquire and analyze digital evidence Conduct in-depth forensic analysis of Windows operating systems covering Windows 10–specific feature forensicsUtilize anti-forensic techniques, including steganography, data destruction techniques, encryption, and anonymity techniques Who This Book Is For Police and other law enforcement personnel, judges (with no technical background), corporate and nonprofit management, IT specialists and computer security professionals, incident response team members, IT military and intelligence services officers, system administrators, e-business security professionals, and banking and insurance professionals




Handbook of Digital Forensics and Investigation


Book Description

Handbook of Digital Forensics and Investigation builds on the success of the Handbook of Computer Crime Investigation, bringing together renowned experts in all areas of digital forensics and investigation to provide the consummate resource for practitioners in the field. It is also designed as an accompanying text to Digital Evidence and Computer Crime. This unique collection details how to conduct digital investigations in both criminal and civil contexts, and how to locate and utilize digital evidence on computers, networks, and embedded systems. Specifically, the Investigative Methodology section of the Handbook provides expert guidance in the three main areas of practice: Forensic Analysis, Electronic Discovery, and Intrusion Investigation. The Technology section is extended and updated to reflect the state of the art in each area of specialization. The main areas of focus in the Technology section are forensic analysis of Windows, Unix, Macintosh, and embedded systems (including cellular telephones and other mobile devices), and investigations involving networks (including enterprise environments and mobile telecommunications technology). This handbook is an essential technical reference and on-the-job guide that IT professionals, forensic practitioners, law enforcement, and attorneys will rely on when confronted with computer related crime and digital evidence of any kind. *Provides methodologies proven in practice for conducting digital investigations of all kinds*Demonstrates how to locate and interpret a wide variety of digital evidence, and how it can be useful in investigations *Presents tools in the context of the investigative process, including EnCase, FTK, ProDiscover, foremost, XACT, Network Miner, Splunk, flow-tools, and many other specialized utilities and analysis platforms*Case examples in every chapter give readers a practical understanding of the technical, logistical, and legal challenges that arise in real investigations




Practical Linux Forensics


Book Description

A resource to help forensic investigators locate, analyze, and understand digital evidence found on modern Linux systems after a crime, security incident or cyber attack. Practical Linux Forensics dives into the technical details of analyzing postmortem forensic images of Linux systems which have been misused, abused, or the target of malicious attacks. It helps forensic investigators locate and analyze digital evidence found on Linux desktops, servers, and IoT devices. Throughout the book, you learn how to identify digital artifacts which may be of interest to an investigation, draw logical conclusions, and reconstruct past activity from incidents. You’ll learn how Linux works from a digital forensics and investigation perspective, and how to interpret evidence from Linux environments. The techniques shown are intended to be independent of the forensic analysis platforms and tools used. Learn how to: Extract evidence from storage devices and analyze partition tables, volume managers, popular Linux filesystems (Ext4, Btrfs, and Xfs), and encryption Investigate evidence from Linux logs, including traditional syslog, the systemd journal, kernel and audit logs, and logs from daemons and applications Reconstruct the Linux startup process, from boot loaders (UEFI and Grub) and kernel initialization, to systemd unit files and targets leading up to a graphical login Perform analysis of power, temperature, and the physical environment of a Linux machine, and find evidence of sleep, hibernation, shutdowns, reboots, and crashes Examine installed software, including distro installers, package formats, and package management systems from Debian, Fedora, SUSE, Arch, and other distros Perform analysis of time and Locale settings, internationalization including language and keyboard settings, and geolocation on a Linux system Reconstruct user login sessions (shell, X11 and Wayland), desktops (Gnome, KDE, and others) and analyze keyrings, wallets, trash cans, clipboards, thumbnails, recent files and other desktop artifacts Analyze network configuration, including interfaces, addresses, network managers, DNS, wireless artifacts (Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, WWAN), VPNs (including WireGuard), firewalls, and proxy settings Identify traces of attached peripheral devices (PCI, USB, Thunderbolt, Bluetooth) including external storage, cameras, and mobiles, and reconstruct printing and scanning activity




Practical Forensic Imaging


Book Description

Forensic image acquisition is an important part of postmortem incident response and evidence collection. Digital forensic investigators acquire, preserve, and manage digital evidence to support civil and criminal cases; examine organizational policy violations; resolve disputes; and analyze cyber attacks. Practical Forensic Imaging takes a detailed look at how to secure and manage digital evidence using Linux-based command line tools. This essential guide walks you through the entire forensic acquisition process and covers a wide range of practical scenarios and situations related to the imaging of storage media. You’ll learn how to: –Perform forensic imaging of magnetic hard disks, SSDs and flash drives, optical discs, magnetic tapes, and legacy technologies –Protect attached evidence media from accidental modification –Manage large forensic image files, storage capacity, image format conversion, compression, splitting, duplication, secure transfer and storage, and secure disposal –Preserve and verify evidence integrity with cryptographic and piecewise hashing, public key signatures, and RFC-3161 timestamping –Work with newer drive and interface technologies like NVME, SATA Express, 4K-native sector drives, SSHDs, SAS, UASP/USB3x, and Thunderbolt –Manage drive security such as ATA passwords; encrypted thumb drives; Opal self-encrypting drives; OS-encrypted drives using BitLocker, FileVault, and TrueCrypt; and others –Acquire usable images from more complex or challenging situations such as RAID systems, virtual machine images, and damaged media With its unique focus on digital forensic acquisition and evidence preservation, Practical Forensic Imaging is a valuable resource for experienced digital forensic investigators wanting to advance their Linux skills and experienced Linux administrators wanting to learn digital forensics. This is a must-have reference for every digital forensics lab.




Guide to Digital Forensics


Book Description

This work introduces the reader to the world of digital forensics in a practical and accessible manner. The text was written to fulfill a need for a book that introduces forensic methodology and sound forensic thinking, combined with hands-on examples for common tasks in a computer forensic examination. The author has several years of experience as a computer forensics examiner and is now working as a university-level lecturer. Guide to Digital Forensics: A Concise and Practical Introduction is intended for students that are looking for an introduction to computer forensics and can also be used as a collection of instructions for practitioners. The aim is to describe and explain the steps taken during a forensic examination, with the intent of making the reader aware of the constraints and considerations that apply during a fo rensic examination in law enforcement and in the private sector. Upon reading this book, the reader should have a proper overview of the field of digital forensics, starting them on the journey of becoming a computer forensics expert.




Practical Cyber Forensics


Book Description

Become an effective cyber forensics investigator and gain a collection of practical, efficient techniques to get the job done. Diving straight into a discussion of anti-forensic techniques, this book shows you the many ways to effectively detect them. Now that you know what you are looking for, you’ll shift your focus to network forensics, where you cover the various tools available to make your network forensics process less complicated. Following this, you will work with cloud and mobile forensic techniques by considering the concept of forensics as a service (FaSS), giving you cutting-edge skills that will future-proof your career. Building on this, you will learn the process of breaking down malware attacks, web attacks, and email scams with case studies to give you a clearer view of the techniques to be followed. Another tricky technique is SSD forensics, so the author covers this in detail to give you the alternative analysis techniques you’ll need. To keep you up to speed on contemporary forensics, Practical Cyber Forensics includes a chapter on Bitcoin forensics, where key crypto-currency forensic techniques will be shared. Finally, you will see how to prepare accurate investigative reports. What You Will LearnCarry out forensic investigation on Windows, Linux, and macOS systems Detect and counter anti-forensic techniques Deploy network, cloud, and mobile forensics Investigate web and malware attacks Write efficient investigative reports Who This Book Is For Intermediate infosec professionals looking for a practical approach to investigative cyber forensics techniques.




Practical Digital Forensics


Book Description

A Guide to Enter the Journey of a Digital Forensic Investigator KEY FEATURES ● Provides hands-on training in a forensics lab, allowing learners to conduct their investigations and analysis. ● Covers a wide range of forensics topics such as web, email, RAM, and mobile devices. ● Establishes a solid groundwork in digital forensics basics including evidence-gathering tools and methods. DESCRIPTION Forensics offers every IT and computer professional a wide opportunity of exciting and lucrative career. This book is a treasure trove of practical knowledge for anyone interested in forensics, including where to seek evidence and how to extract it from buried digital spaces. The book begins with the exploration of Digital Forensics with a brief overview of the field's most basic definitions, terms, and concepts about scientific investigations. The book lays down the groundwork for how digital forensics works and explains its primary objectives, including collecting, acquiring, and analyzing digital evidence. This book focuses on starting from the essentials of forensics and then practicing the primary tasks and activities that forensic analysts and investigators execute for every security incident. This book will provide you with the technical abilities necessary for Digital Forensics, from the ground up, in the form of stories, hints, notes, and links to further reading. Towards the end, you'll also have the opportunity to build up your lab, complete with detailed instructions and a wide range of forensics tools, in which you may put your newly acquired knowledge to the test. WHAT YOU WILL LEARN ● Get familiar with the processes and procedures involved in establishing your own in-house digital forensics lab. ● Become confident in acquiring and analyzing data from RAM, HDD, and SSD. ● In-detail windows forensics and analyzing deleted files, USB, and IoT firmware. ● Get acquainted with email investigation, browser forensics, and different tools to collect the evidence. ● Develop proficiency with anti-forensic methods, including metadata manipulation, password cracking, and steganography. WHO THIS BOOK IS FOR Anyone working as a forensic analyst, forensic investigator, forensic specialist, network administrator, security engineer, cybersecurity analyst, or application engineer will benefit from reading this book. You only need a foundational knowledge of networking and hardware to get started with this book. TABLE OF CONTENTS 1. Introduction to Digital Forensics 2. Essential Technical Concepts 3. Hard Disks and File Systems 4. Requirements for a Computer Forensics Lab 5. Acquiring Digital Evidence 6. Analysis of Digital Evidence 7. Windows Forensic Analysis 8. Web Browser and E-mail Forensics 9. E-mail Forensics 10. Anti-Forensics Techniques and Report Writing 11. Hands-on Lab Practical




A Practical Guide to Digital Forensics Investigations


Book Description

THE DEFINITIVE GUIDE TO DIGITAL FORENSICS—NOW THOROUGHLY UPDATED WITH NEW TECHNIQUES, TOOLS, AND SOLUTIONS Complete, practical coverage of both technical and investigative skills Thoroughly covers modern devices, networks, and the Internet Addresses online and lab investigations, documentation, admissibility, and more Aligns closely with the NSA Knowledge Units and the NICE Cybersecurity Workforce Framework As digital crime soars, so does the need for experts who can recover and evaluate evidence for successful prosecution. Now, Dr. Darren Hayes has thoroughly updated his definitive guide to digital forensics investigations, reflecting current best practices for securely seizing, extracting and analyzing digital evidence, protecting the integrity of the chain of custody, effectively documenting investigations, and scrupulously adhering to the law, so that your evidence is admissible in court. Every chapter of this new Second Edition is revised to reflect newer technologies, the latest challenges, technical solutions, and recent court decisions. Hayes has added detailed coverage of wearable technologies, IoT forensics, 5G communications, vehicle forensics, and mobile app examinations; advances in incident response; and new iPhone and Android device examination techniques. Through practical activities, realistic examples, and fascinating case studies, you'll build hands-on mastery—and prepare to succeed in one of today's fastest-growing fields. LEARN HOW TO Understand what digital forensics examiners do, the evidence they work with, and the opportunities available to them Explore how modern device features affect evidence gathering, and use diverse tools to investigate them Establish a certified forensics lab and implement best practices for managing and processing evidence Gather data online to investigate today's complex crimes Uncover indicators of compromise and master best practices for incident response Investigate financial fraud with digital evidence Use digital photographic evidence, including metadata and social media images Investigate wearable technologies and other “Internet of Things” devices Learn new ways to extract a full fi le system image from many iPhones Capture extensive data and real-time intelligence from popular apps Follow strict rules to make evidence admissible, even after recent Supreme Court decisions




A Practical Guide to Computer Forensics Investigations


Book Description

A Practical Guide to Computer Forensics Investigations introduces the newest technologies along with detailed information on how the evidence contained on these devices should be analyzed. Packed with practical, hands-on activities, students will learn unique subjects from chapters including Mac Forensics, Mobile Forensics, Cyberbullying, and Child Endangerment. This well-developed book will prepare students for the rapidly-growing field of computer forensics for a career with law enforcement, accounting firms, banks and credit card companies, private investigation companies, or government agencies.