NCC Members have free access to this Guideline on the Principia website.

Computer Forensics

In the 1820s a British mathematician, Charles Babbage, invented the first mechanical 'computer'. More significantly in 1833 he conceived the first general-purpose digital computer. During the intervening years computers have evolved into highly sophisticated, portable and immensely powerful machines, which have pervaded every facet of our society. We only have to cast our minds back to the infamous millennium bug to really appreciate just how tightly computers are woven into the fabric of our everyday life.

Just take a moment to think about some of the items that you use in everyday life. Computers are all around us, automatic teller machines (ATM) in the high street, electronic personal organisers, mobile phones even household appliances such as washing machines have the capability to function in much the same way as a computer. This in addition to the boom in home internet usage and the e-commerce generated as a result. National statistics have shown that there are now some 11.4 million households online and that a staggering ?10 billion was spent online in 2000 rising to ?18.4 billion in 2001.

The corollary of this, is that this widespread use of technology has provided greater opportunity and means to the erstwhile criminal for perpetrating crimes such as fraud, theft, pornography and indeed the theft of the machines themselves as high value commodities.

As the criminal has made greater use of technology so traditional law enforcement agencies have employed the technology to trace and capture suspects. The use of computer forensics has now become commonplace throughout the world for the investigation of computer based evidence. It is also becoming an essential tool for any corporate investigation as a result of such legislation as the Data Protection Act and the European Convention on Human Rights.