Cyber Forensics Essay

Cyber Forensics by Richard Boddington School of Information Technology Assignment 2 – Research Essay Assignment outline †¢ Assignment 2 – Research Essay is a submission of an essay based on the cyber forensic environment and is worth 30% of the overall unit mark †¢ Internal and external students undertake the same activities and are assessed the same. ICT248 undergraduate students are assessed differently from ICT548 post-graduate students in Assignment 2 †¢ The submission of a research essay based on the cyber forensic environment. The length of the essay should be: †¢ ICT248 Undergraduate students – 3,500 words †¢ ICT548 Postgraduate students – 4,500 words 2 Research not a ‘free-range essay’ †¢ You are required to complete and submit a RESEARCHBASED essay describing and discussing the processes AND challenges involved in identifying, recovering, securing, examining, analysing and preparing digital evidence from a crime scene †¢ This covers the theoretical part of the unit and should be based on the lecture/workshop material, this guide, the lecture notes and, most importantly your own research endeavours †¢ In my experience, employers are looking for graduates who possess analytical, research and communication (writing) skills above and beyond the components of the degree 3 The essay MUST contain: †¢ Introduction and table of contents – Defining your scope of coverage of the essay †¢ Content – To enhance your grades, you MUST include some description and discussion of the following in your essay: †¢ †¢ †¢ Describe digital evidence Explain the key principles of cyber forensics Discuss investigation processes used to: †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ preserve locate select analyse validate, and present evidence obtained from a computer for evidentiary purposes †¢ Discuss and the importance of crime reconstruction hypotheses and alternative hypotheses 4 The essay MUST contain: †¢ Conclusion – most students overlook and underestimate the conclusion – this is where you summarise the facts described in the body of your essay and add your own conclusions based on what you have read. No new material should be added here. †¢ Grammar and spelling – spell check your drafts – get a friend or relative to proof-read your drafts prior to submission †¢ References that are cited in the essay – use EndNote, if you wish. This is available from the Library, free of charge. Post your draft to Turnitin (see separate instructions) to ensure that you have not inadvertently plagiarised the work of others †¢ Bibliography of other reference material that was used but not cited 5 Essay structure †¢ Use appropriate headings and sub-headings that relate to the chosen topic †¢ The essay should include relevant quotations -properly referenced and examples used to support your discussion within the essay †¢ Please don’t overuse quotations (max 5% of the document and they are not included in the word count) †¢ You will also be assessed on the presentation of your essay, as well as the contents 6 Referencing †¢ The quality and breadth of references used will be taken into account and credit will be given for evidence of wide reading on the topic and use of material from a variety of sources (i. e. , Learning Guide, books, journals, websites, newspapers, etc) †¢ Marks will not be awarded where correct referencing is not used and will also not be awarded where the above instructions are not followed †¢ All assertions by other authors must be correctly referenced. †¢ Please restrict your own comments to observations about the work of authors you are quoting †¢ Your own world view and statements of unsubstantiated facts (that are not referenced) do not earn marks †¢ Please see the Online Resources page on the unit MyLMS homepage. This will provide you with some links to help you with your essay preparation and writing 7 Turnitin †¢ The Research Essay must be fully referenced where the assertions of other authors are being used and must first be submitted to Turnitin before it is submitted to LMS as a completed assignment †¢ The Turnitin account that will have been prepared for you by the Unit Coordinator and available through the Unit LMS site †¢ Late submissions due to delays in submitting assignments through TURNITIN are not grounds for seeking an extension for the assignment. 8 Suggested format of the essay †¢ Essay style may be in report form or an essay – that is your choice †¢ Use of heading and a table of contents makes it easier for you to structure the essay in a logical and cohesive form †¢ It also makes it easier for the reader to navigate your essay and helps prepare the reader for each new major concept that you are introducing. †¢ Refer to the hints and tips on essay writing and referencing that may have already been posted in the MyLMS discussion board. If you are not already making good use of the board by reading the contents, I exhort you to do so †¢ Include a descriptive title – many students do not do this 9 Essay structure †¢ Introduction – an overview of the key issues, concepts, etc. , that you want to share with your reader – some of you may wish to include an abstract †¢ Body of the essay – more details of what you have stated in your introduction – use sub headings – logical flow of information and key and sub-topics – dot points ok, but don’t over use them – quotes should be kept to a minimum and are not included in the word count – extra points awarded for you paraphrasing the work of the authors you quote †¢ Use linking paragraphs to introduce the next topic †¢ Some room for argument in your essay, but restrict this to your opinion of the work of credible authors you include in your essay 10 Reference materials †¢ Referencing – as above – ensure it meets the academic standards of the university. Suspected plagiarism will be reported to the Dean – so take care to avoid it †¢ For an essay of this calibre – I suggest at least 5 quality journal or book articles per topic. †¢ Bibliography to include those references you looked at but did not include as a reference will also enhance your essay’s credibility 11 Searching for materials †¢ Try the new iGoogle feature that incorporates SFX FindIT to enhance your search for quality articles and books on the essay topic: http://wwwlib. murdoch. edu. au/mylibrary/tools. html 12 13 Criteria Assignment Structure Max marks 3 Comments Mark awarded Introduction, objectives, scope, logical flow, headings and subheadings Grammar, spelling 4 Correct English usage Coverage of the Topic 15 Coverage, matches scope. Information not appropriately referenced at best gets no marks and at worse may suggest plagiarism. o o o o Analysis, Conclusion and discussion Describe digital evidence Explain the key principles of cyber forensics. Discuss examination processes used to: ? preserve ? locate ? select ? analyse ? validate, and ? present evidence obtained from a computer for evidentiary purposes. Discuss and the importance of crime reconstruction hypotheses and alternative hypotheses. 4 Draws together discussion, highlights implications, etc. Citations 4 Used correctly in-text, provide examples included in references References Quality, breadth, completeness, matches citations, Bibliography. TOTAL MARKS 30 14 15