One of the biggest computer frauds was committed last year, when credit and debit card details of customers were stolen from clothing retailer TK MAXX. With the details of over 45 million cards stolen, customers in the UK and the US are shocked. With the help of a laptop and a few other electronic devices, the culprits were able to perform the biggest theft in the history sitting in their hideouts. Computer crimes such as this are becoming common, which reiterates the importance of computer forensics.
Computer forensics involves the process of analysing the contents of a computer in the process of investigating a crime. The information stored on a computer can provide more information about the crime committed. Computer forensic experts try to analyse the contents of the hard drive or any removable memory used by the suspect during investigation. Apart from helping to track the culprit, the result of forensics can be produced as a proof in criminal and civil litigations.
Computer Threats
Internet has simplified our lives tremendously. Irrespective of whether you are purchasing a home or shopping for a gift for your son’s birthday, everything can be done from the comfort of your drawing room. But there are always two sides to a coin. Internet has given rise to modern crimes that pose severe threat to the individuals and companies alike. Now, a person need not break into your safe to steal your money. With a little expertise, he can do it sitting in front of his PC.
Now, with almost every company having its presence online, the criminals have found a new venue to use their expertise to amass money. Internet frauds can even ruin a company that it can run out of business. Here are some of the common Internet frauds faced by companies:
- Modification or deletion of important files
- Selling confidential information to the competitor
- Spying on company information
- Unauthorised duplication of confidential data
- Computer break-ins
- Inappropriate usage of company’s resource
- IP theft
- Breach of agreement
Now, all the crimes could be committed by an internal employee or a third party criminal. A third party criminal can gain access to your computer through the Internet which allows computers all over the world to communicate with each other.
Understanding the Need for Computer Forensics in Data Recovery
Imagine the huge money and time that your company has invested in developing a new technology. What would happen if an unfaithful employee stole the information and sold it to your competitor? What if you were never able to track down the culprit and he continued to be a threat to your business? Your business would suffer heavily.
Going through your employees’ correspondences on your own to locate the culprit might not help. Usually a person committing a crime would be too intelligent to leave the evidence of his crime in tact. There is every possibility that he would delete all the necessary information that could prove his crime.
This is where computer forensics comes into the picture. When it is difficult for a normal user to retrieve these deleted files, it is possible for a forensic expert to retrieve them which would serve as a vital tool in investigation. Following are some of the crucial information that a forensic expert can retrieve even if the user has deleted them:
- Recover deleted e-mails that could help identify the suspect’s correspondences.
- Recover information from a hard drive even after it has been formatted or partitioned.
- Recover any data that has been deleted on the hard drive.
- Find the information accessed by the suspect to determine if he has been spying.
- Retrieve faxes sent and received by the computer.
By accessing all these information details, the computer forensic expert could provide sufficient information to the police that would help them nab the culprit. By taking appropriate action, not only will you be able to bring the culprit to book, you might be able to recover your loss as well.
With computer frauds becoming easier to commit, it can be brought under check only with the assistance of computer forensics, increased security and stringent laws. So the next time, you suspect something might be going wrong within your organisation, do not wait for the crime to happen. With the help of a good computer forensic expert, you might be able to stop the crime even before it is committed. This could not only prevent heavy loss to the company, but it can also help you sustain your reputation with your customers.