Digital evidence in cloud computing systems

Cloud computing systems provide a new paradigm to the distributed processing of digital data. Digital forensic investigations involving such systems are likely to involve more complex digital evidence acquisition and analysis. Some public cloud computing systems may involve the storage and processing of digital data in different jurisdictions, and some organisations may choose to encrypt their data before it enters the cloud. Both of these factors in conjunction with cloud architectures may make forensic investigation of such systems more complex and time consuming. There are no established digital forensic guidelines that specifically address the investigation of cloud computing systems. In this paper we examine the legal aspects of digital forensic investigations of cloud computing systems.

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