Teaching computer forensics course: challenges and opportunities

Computer forensics, still a relatively new discipline in computer security, focuses on finding digital evidence after a computer security incident has occurred. Computer forensics is the scientific examination and analysis of data held on, or retrieved from, computer storage media in such a way that the information can be used as evidence in a court of law. Computer evidence is often transparently created by the operating system without the knowledge of the computer user. The information may be hidden from view. To find it, special forensic software tools and techniques are required. Technology is expanding at a fast rate, and along with the increased use of computers, the Internet, and digital devices comes an increase in digital crime. With the increased use of computers to commit crimes, a need has rapidly developed for forensic experts to extract useful information from computer evidence. Computer forensics is a fast-growing field with high long-term projected demand for trained professionals.