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 Digital Evidence and Forensics

  Microgen (see reuse policy). Description
              Computers are used for committing crime, and, thanks to the burgeoning science of digital evidence forensics, law enforcement now uses computers to fight crime.

Digital evidence is information stored or transmitted in binary form that may be relied on in court. It can be found on a computer hard drive, a mobile phone, among other place s. Digital evidence is commonly associated with electronic crime, or e-crime, such as child pornography or credit card fraud. However, digital evidence is now used to prosecute all types of crimes, not just e-crime. For example, suspects' e-mail or mobile phone files might contain critical evidence regarding their intent, their whereabouts at the time of a crime and their relationship with other suspects. In 2005, for example, a floppy disk led investigators to the BTK serial killer who had eluded police capture since 1974 and claimed the lives of at least 10 victims.

In an effort to fight e-crime and to collect relevant digital evidence for all crimes, law enforcement agencies are incorporating the collection and analysis of digital evidence, also known as computer forensics, into their infrastructure. Law enforcement agencies are challenged by the need to train officers to collect digital evidence and keep up with rapidly evolving technologies such as computer operating systems.

On this page, find links to articles, awards, events, publications, and multimedia related to digital evidence and forensics.


    
  
Articles
        
                      Improving the Collection of Digital Evidence
                  New Approaches to Digital Evidence Acquisition and Analysis
                  Sexual  Assault Cases: Exploring the Importance of Non-DNA Forensic Evidence

  View related articles


    
  
Events and Trainings
        
                      Digital Evidence 101
                  Digital Caseload Processing with the NIST National Software Reference Library
                  Best Practices for Digital Image Processing

  View related events and trainings
           |       View related on-demand events and training



  
Awards
        
                      View related awards



    
  
Publications
        
                      Just Science Podcast: Just Building Partnerships to Advance Forensic Technology
                  Just Science Podcast: Just Forensics in the Digital Age
                  Just Science Podcast: Just Collecting Fingerprints Without Contact

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