Cyber crime and digital Forensics

It has been a quite few years now that I have been teaching computer forensics on behalf of the UK's NCC and the subject. Recently I have given a talk for the local ISACA chapter entitled 'The Realm of Digital Forensics' which went pretty well. It's main aim was to introduce people coming from an auditing background to the subject. This worked well, however the talk couldn't get technical as I would have lost my audience.

That brings me to the point of the article. From a local perspective; being a relatively new subject; there is very little knowledge of what the job entails. Skills at various levels both technical and non-technical. Not to mention soft-skills which are somehow always assumed to exist. Although we are a small island and specialization in a particular field is not necessarily a good thing for your career, the truth is that from a legal perspective we still need these skills and services --- as communication technologies multiply every six months and more and more information is saved in digital format, the reality is that there WILL be (and is) abuse. The consequence takes the form of embezzlement, harassment, fraud, espionage and a myriad of other cyber-crimes that start becoming more prevalent as companies lose money.

Recently I was lucky enough to win a study bursary to continue studying and obtain a Masters degree in IT & Telecommunications Law with the University of Strathclyde. This, coupled with my technical skills, will give me an excellent insight to the legal aspect of information security. I envisage that local private companies, government and even the legal system will need these skills as cyber-crimes continue to rise.

What we now need is for communities to recognize that for digital evidence to hold in a court of law, not only do chain-of-evidence and chain-of-custodies apply, but there must be adequate funding, awareness and recognition of expertise.

Cyber-crime is a reality. It's time we recognize it and allocate resources on a national scale to ensure awareness and justice in a proper manner. Are we dealing with it in the right way?

Posted by Donald Tabone