As part of the duties of a digital forensics examiner, creating an investigation plan is a standard practice. Write a 3 to 4 (no

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11 days ago

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As part of the duties of a digital forensics examiner, creating an investigation plan is a standard practice. Write a 3 to 4 (no

t including title or reference page) page paper that describes how you would organize an investigation for a potential fraud case. In addition, list methods you plan to use to validate the data collected from drives and files such as Word and Excel, with hashes. Specify the hash algorithm you plan to use, such as MD5 or SHA1. Make sure you follow the grading rubric and write your paper in APA format.

Computers and Technology

1 answer:

Harlamova29_29 [932] · Answer 1 · 2026-03-25T16:41:04+03:00

A digital forensic investigation is a specific type of digital inquiry where methodologies and techniques are employed to enable results that can be presented in legal frameworks. This investigation might begin to ascertain if counterfeit digital images are present on a computer. For instance, Global Finance Company, which has a broad range of financial products and clients globally, finds itself in a situation where a breach has been reported involving the manager's computer. In response, a team is dispatched to the branch for the digital forensic investigation. Concerns highlighted by the company include: 1. Timely updates of application and network infrastructure. 2. A report from a branch manager in Brisbane expressing concerns of possible breaches. 3. All office servers and workstations primarily utilize Microsoft Windows. 4. Full implementation of firewalls and network segregation. 5. Although there is intrusion detection and logging across branches, their application has been neglected. The digital forensic investigation follows a structured approach comprising four phases: Collection, Examination, Analysis, and Reporting. The investigation model used proves to be effective for assessing the security incident at the regional branch. 1. In the Collection phase, data from the manager's workstation and all relevant servers must be gathered systematically. This includes identifying both internal and external storage contexts and ensuring availability of necessary forensic tools. The imaging of target computers is also crucial, along with hashing to maintain data integrity, while capturing network traffic. 2. The Examination phase involves a comprehensive analysis, comparing original data against logical copies to derive insights concerning system registry evaluations and other critical data points. Tools used for this include specific commands to assess file retrieval. 3. In the Analysis phase, various methodologies are employed, including keyword searches, file recovery, and registry data extraction, utilizing tools like FTK and ILOOKIX to access essential documents. 4. Finally, the Reporting phase concludes the investigation with the audit team generating a comprehensive report detailing the incident's summary, analyzing data, and concluding findings, while also supporting documentation with both volatile and non-volatile evidence.