Patent ID: 8838969

Claim:
In a wide area network including a server, client device, and target device, a method for remotely conducting forensic investigations of the target device over the wide area network, the method comprising: establishing secure communication between the client device and the target device over the wide area network in response to data provided by the server, wherein the target device runs a servelet installed on the target device; invoking the servelet by the client device to obtain, over the wide area network, a list of target files stored in the target device; generating and encrypting by the client device an investigation command for investigating the target files, wherein the investigation command includes a search key; transmitting the encrypted investigation command to the target device over the wide area network; generating and encrypting by the servelet running in the target device an output responsive to the investigation command, wherein the output generated by the servelet includes information on matches of the search key found upon searching, by the servelet, the target files; and transmitting the encrypted output by the target device to the client device via the secure communication established between the client device and the target device, wherein the transmitting of the encrypted output by the target device to the client device bypasses the server.