Overview of digital forensics at NIST - Article Example

Digital Forensics at NIST National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) is a federal technology agency that mainlyworks hand in hand with industries to improve the innovations technology and security. Digital forensics is a scientific technique used to provide analyzed information to support investigations in cases of security incidences, arising from crimes, system damages and even recoveries of lost or damaged data (Shirley, par. 1). The main aim of using these techniques is to provide defined information to help in the investigations, analysis and provide proper recommendations on computer based security incidences.

Due to the increased computer related crimes, it is a fundamental requirement for any organization to employ these digital forensic skills to establish and solve their security issues. Use of these forensic techniques provides an additional assistance to the organization since it helps in troubleshooting, identification and repair of operational issues within a system, reviewing of the operating systems (Barnett, par. 9). Also provides recovery of lost data from computer systems in case of malicious or accidental damage.

It provides protection of sensitive information which would otherwise be used for malicious purposes and even acquisition of data from the hosts that can be used by the company in the future. Furthermore, it also gives an opportunity to monitor log entries and prevention of policy violations.Apart from all the support these digital forensics, there are shortcomings that accompany their use and benefits outlined above. One disadvantage is the difficulty in obtaining information from mobile devices like phones, iPads, and personal digital assistants.

Law enforcement and forensics on these devices are still a challenge since most of the mobile devices require specialized interfaces, storage, and hardware. Also getting information from the cloud storage space is tedious because of the complicated cloud technology. Works cited.Bennett, David. “The Challenges Facing Computer Forensics in Obtaining Information from Mobile Devices for Use in Criminal Investigations”. Forensic Focus Journal. 20.8 (2011). Web March 28, 2015< http://articles.

forensicfocus.com/2011/08/22/the-challenges-facing-computer-forensics-investigators-in-obtaining-information-from-mobile-devices-for-use-in-criminal-investigations/> Shirley, Radack. Forensic techniques: helping organizations improve their responses to information security incidences. Web 28 March 2015. < http://www.itl.nist.gov/lab/bulletns/bltnsep06.htm>