A forensic investigation framework for Internet of Things monitoring

Abstract

With low-energy wireless sensing platforms enabling communications between the physical world and numerous Internet based digital devices, Internet connected physical objects have blurred the lines that traditionally separated a physical scene from the digital scene. Whilst sophisticated new Internet enabled physical objects are rapidly introduced for various IoT applications, the increasing variety and similarities of the connected Things to ordinary physical objects has significant implications for the digital forensic process of identification. The often-constrained Things, however, communicate utilizing new and improved technologies that provide for robust wireless communications where other traditional wireless technologies are less suitable. This brings the opportunity to gather valuable insights from the radio frequency signals of a physical environment. This research introduces a novel concept of harnessing radio frequency signals to discover, determine and locate the wireless sensing deployments of a digital scene. A model of the system for IoT monitoring combines the processes of collecting communications between connected Things, building the logical topologies and predicting the locations of disparate Things. The design of this solution is suited to benefit both forensic investigators and law enforcement agencies.