What Every Lawyer Should Know About Digital Forensics

March 2023Forensics General

Abstract

Retaining a subject matter expert should provide you with not just the sound analysis of the technical subject but also an education for you and perhaps a judge and jury. So, what is digital forensics? Simply put, it is the art and science of finding and interpreting digital data to learn the truth. The sources of digital data are an ever-growing sphere of devices and systems. The two most common are computers and cell phones. This article will educate you about a few of the digital forensics topics that repeatedly come up in legal matters. The process often starts with knowing the right questions to ask. To do that you need a basic understanding of some key concepts such as: keyword searches, metadata, hash values, forensic (mirror) images, digital signatures, cell phone location data, and very large document productions. Proper application of these topics has resulted in many cases coming to a resounding close in courtroom verdicts or stopping some cases in their tracks before any legal document is ever filed. Can you prove something in particular happened? Can you prove that something didn’t happen? The two questions may sound similar, but they are in fact very different. Digital forensics may be the key.

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