Types of Computer Forensics Software

Types of Computer Forensics Software

Tools are needed in order to efficiently do a job. This is true for all professions including that of computer forensics professionals. This is why these experts in computer forensics maintain a set of computer forensics software that they use to regularly do their job. These tools enable them to efficiently extract digital data from a host of electronic devices in all kinds of conditions. Here are a few types of those software.

Data Retrieval Software – data retrieval is the essential task of computer forensics professionals. Most computer evidence comes in the form of electronic data. As such a computer forensic professional must be able to extract data from all kinds of digital devices. Data retrieval software can make things easier for them by automating some of the mundane tasks of locating where the data is stored and extracting them. These special software can even extract data from encrypted systems, password protected archives and even from damaged memory storage devices like hard drives and DVD-RWs. Data retrieval software is an important part of a computer forensics professional’s toolkit. These software are not only able to extract data from computers, they can also extract them from mobile phones, PDAs and even digital music players.

Network Investigation Software –  another important aspect of computer forensics is network investigations. More and more data is now stored on networked servers online. More and more crimes are also committed over the network lines. Take for example a murder case. Computer forensics is done on the computer and its corresponding internet activities in order to determine if the victim was stalked by the murderer online. Special software that detect illegal hacking activities, tapping as well as taking over a computer is used by the forensics expert in order to trace the source of these illegal activities. These software programs are power enough that they can trace an illegal intrusion back to the source computer and tap all its components in order to identify the perpetrator. Sometimes they can be able to turn the criminal’s web cam on in order to get a facial identification of the criminal.

Data Reconstruction Software –  technically inclined criminals sometimes destroy their computers to attempt to destroy any compromising evidence that it contains. They usually do this in panic while they are being arrested. Sometimes these hard drives are physically damaged that there’s almost no hope of retrieving data from it. However there are specialized software that forensics experts can use to attempt to reconstruct data from these damaged drives.

There are a lot of other computer forensics software aside from these the three previously mentioned types. These are developed by private companies side by side with law enforcement. Most of these software are so exclusive, you need a special license just to be able to buy and use them.