Cyber Forensics #theworldisgettingvirtual

We live in the age of technology with computers running our lives. With the development of technology every moment the crimes associated with it are also on a rise. Currently cyber crime costs the world around 100 billion annually. Cyber forensics encompassing cyber security is the weapon to counteract cyber crimes. More pertinently cyber forensics is the application of scientifically proven methods to legally prove cyber crime. In this context Raul Mishra , Vice President , Data64 stated “ With the increase in cyber crime all around, cyber forensics is the need of the hour.”

What all does cyber forensic include?

Cyber forensic includes everything involved in investigating cyber crime cases and to make the cyber space safer. Cyber forensics can be broadly classified into computer forensics and network forensics. A vast array of tools and techniques are involved in cyber forensics and they keeps evolving with changing digital landscape. However the application of all these tools and techniques must abide all the existing laws, rules and regulations and should be carried out on a copy of the evidence so as to maintain the integrity of the evidence to be presented in the court of law. Cyber forensics does not only include cyber investigations but also any kind of operational troubleshooting, recovering off accidental system vitiation, log monitoring and a variety of other purposes.

Nowadays almost every organisation has their own dedicated cyber forensic team who is responsible for detecting and solving any computer or network related problems within the organisation. For any cyber forensic process, there are three essential steps to be followed:

·         Collection of digital evidence.

·         Examination of the digital evidence using various tools and techniques.

·         Analysis of the results obtained to reach a conclusion.

·         Reporting to the responsible authority.

However, all the procedures must be carried out by authorised skilful professionals by strictly prohibiting the bypass of any law. As stated by Ashley Eates, General Manager Project, Data64     “The process of cyber forensics has to be carried out very securely to avoid misleading of evidential values.”

The internet is no more a safe place to dwell. Every time we surf the net we may be rolling out the red carpet for some sort of malicious programs, codes or softwares into our system even without our notice. These lead to the compromising of our systems. Globally  approximately 56million users fall victim to cyber crime annually. More than 600,000 facebook accounts are hacked everyday. News of data breach in companies and money laundering frauds in the financial sector has become a commonplace phrase. In this context Rahul Mishra, Vice President , Data64 said “ It is really unfortunate that a space like the internet is being plagued by malicious activities.”

Cyber forensic centres are being built and taken seriously all around to fight against cyber crime and to maintain our privacy in the cyber space.  Thus the building up of cyber army is being given importance by nations to protect themselves during any cyber warfare. It is being considered strongly that if a third world war takes place, it will mainly be via the cyber space. Through cyber space, an entire country can be brought down by enemies.

Cyber forensic can however be subdivided into memory forensics, malware forensics, facebook forensics, google forensics, windows forensics, linux forensics and so on. It wraps up all the aspects that can experience any sort of predicament in a network with sevral networked systems. Thus the development of cyber forensic is a huge step towards making our cyber life safe and happy.