Mobile forensics using the harmonised digital forensic investigation process

Abstract

Mobile technology is among the fastest developing technologies that have changed the way we live our daily lives. Over the past few years, mobile devices have become the most popular form of communication around the world. However, bundled together with the good and advanced capabilities of the mobile technology, mobile devices can also be used to perform various activities that may be of malicious intent or criminal in nature. This makes mobile devices a valuable source of digital evidence. For this reason, the technological evolution of mobile devices has raised the need to develop standardised investigation process models and procedures within the field of digital forensics. This need further supports the fact that forensic examiners and investigators face challenges when performing data acquisition in a forensically sound manner from mobile devices. This paper, therefore, aims at testing the harmonised digital forensic investigation process through a case study of a mobile forensic investigation. More specifically, an experiment was conducted that aims at testing the performance of the harmonised digital forensic investigation process (HDFIP) as stipulated in the ISO/IEC 27043 draft international standard through the extraction of potential digital evidence from mobile devices.