Title: Seizing Electronic Evidence
1Seizing Electronic Evidence
- Best Practices Secret Service
- http//www.treasury.gov/usss/electronic_evidence.h
tm - Electronic Crime Scene Investigation NIJ
- http//www.ojp.usdoj.gov/nij/pubs-sum/187736.htm
2Before You Twitch
- Consent search or Search warrant
- Understand the nature of the crime
- Read the search warrant
- Concerns
- Safety It is a crime scene
- Destruction of potential evidence
- Plan, Plan, Plan
- The seizure
- The collection techniques
- The order of events
3What to Take Along
- 1) Evidence Tape
- 2) Chain of Custody forms
- 3) Reading Glasses
- 4) Inventory forms
- 5) Camera (battery, memory)
- 6) Backup disposable camera
- 7) Tool kit. Jewelers set. Needle nose
pliers. - 8) Sharpies, pens
- 9) Adhesive tape
- 10) New, wiped and verified Hard Drives in
Pelican, w/lock - 11) Gloves
- 12) Static wrist bands
4More stuff
- 13) Tableau Pelican (ATA, SCSI, eSATA, Firefly)
with power supplies and line cords. Firewire I/F
cables, laptop adaptor. Small laptop adaptor. - 14) Firewire I/F board.
- 15) Several USB mouse. Two PS mouse.
- 16) Laptop with X-Ways and FTK (crossover
tested) - 17) eSATA interface
- 18) USB-small USB cable
- 19) PS2/USB converter
- 20) Small flatscreen monitor
- 21) UPS
- 22) Extension cord
- 23) Power strip (2)
- 24) Digital Media Flash reader
5And More Stuff
- 25) DOS Boot w/Firewire USB.
- 26) DOS Boot with utilities
- 27) 1GB NIC
- 28) ATA interface with cable
- 29) CDs with WinHex, FTK, Linen,
- 30) Boot CD with Helix/Lenin, Boot USB
- 31) F-Response CD
- 32) Dongles FTK, X-Ways, F-Response
- 33) Flashlight
- 34) Powered USB Hub
- 35) Magnifying Glass
- 36) Blank Labels
- 37) Bottle water
6Computers Crime
- Fruits of crime
- Stolen computers
- Tool of criminal activity
- Hacking, counterfeit documents
- Repository of incriminating evidence
- Drug records, meth formulas
- Repository of contraband
- Toons, Tunes
- Unwitting record of criminal activity
- e-mail records, Browsing history
7Potential Evidence
- Probable cause to seize HW?
- Probable cause to seize SW?
- Probable cause to seize Data?
- Where will the search of the seized evidence be
conducted? - Careful of business interruption issues and
proprietary information. - Depends on the role of the computers in the crime.
8Prior to Serving the Warrant
- Start your investigation report
- Understand the nature of the crime
- Describe the role of the computer/digital device
in the crime - Describe the limits of your investigation
- Probable cause for seizure
- What can be seized
- What can be looked at
- Where is the search to be conducted
9Expect the Unexpected
- If it is not covered in your search warrant -
- Get approval from DA
- Get approval from Detective in charge
- Take very detailed notes justifying your actions
10Role of the Computer
- Contraband computer
- HW or SW stolen?
- Tool of the offense
- Writing counterfeit checks, Ids
- Incidental to the offense
- Data storage
11Seize what
- HW
- SW
- Data
- All things digital
- All things related to digital
- Media, notes, documentation
- Stay within the bounds of the search warrant
12Seize/Search where
- On site, in the field office, in a lab
- Disposal of seized items
- Consider the size of the seizure
- Suspects
- Interview
- Passwords
- Location of data
- Installed software
- Network
- Etc.
13Expectation of Privacy
- There is no blanket guarantee of privacy in the
Constitution. - The 4th Amendment sufficed until telephones etc.
- The Wire Tap Law (1934)
- Further refined in
- ECPA 1986
- CALEA
14Legal Invasion of PrivacyLegal Instruments for
Search and Seizure
- Search Warrants
- Warrantless Searches
- Subpoenas
- Wire Taps/Surveillance
- FISA It is a new world.
- NSL It is a brave new world
- NSA ???
15Search Warrant
- Obey the Constitution
- Specifies
- Place
- Persons
- Stuff papers, effects
- Show Probable cause
- Contained in a sworn affidavits
- Support for probable cause
- Signed by a Judge with jurisdiction
16Warrants
- Expectation of privacy
- In public places
- Requires warrants to conduct surveillance
- If given to a 3rd party, no expectation of
privacy - Telephone records, bank deposits,etc.
- Requires subpoena
- Careful Exclusionary Rule
- If government agents engage in unlawful searches
of seizures, then all fruits of search are
excluded from further legal action.
17Warrant
- Warrant to seize computer HW is different from
warrant to seize information. - Seize HW if the HW is contraband, evidence, etc.
- Warrant should describe HW.
- Seize information if it relates to probable
cause. - Warrant should describe information.
- Either image HDD on site OR
- Seize the HW and image at the office
- Be sure you have a warrant for and description of
HW.
18Back to Warrants
- Search warrants and computers, etc.
- Much confusion over the wording of the warrant
- Search and Seize
- HW
- Contents
- Information
- Where home or the office?
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23Search Warrants for Computer stuff
- Be very careful
- Get 2 search warrants
- Number 1
- Search premises, people, vehicles, etc.
- Seize computers, docs, data media, etc.
- Number 2
- Search the contents of the computers, digital
devices, etc. - Business practice concerns taken
24Warrantless Searches
- Permission
- Incident to arrest
- Plain sight
- Recent Oregon ruling
- Through the window of ones home is not in plain
sight
25Search Warrants
- Electronic Device Search Warrant
- HW, SW, documents, storage media notes
- Stored Data
- Requires a separate warrant
- Examination of data
- Service Provider Search Warrant/Subpoena
- Utilities, phone cable, satellite, cellular,
internet, etc. - Billing records, service records, subscriber
info, etc.
26More Planning
- What are the restrictions?
- Photographs, video
- Proprietary information
- Classified information
- Business records
- Business continuity
- Chief is ticked when he gets a law suit for
business losses!
27The Search Seizure
- Secure the scene, restrict access
- Preserve the area, no more fingerprints
- Insure the safety of all concerned
- Nobody touch nothing!
- Usually the forensic specialist will not be a
first responder. - However, often they are.
28Notes
- Keep a very detailed log of every operation
action - Details
- Time
- Order
- They can cover a lot of mistakes during the
seizure and search - What did you do.
- What reasons for doing it.
- Itemize potential harm versus another way of
doing it.
29Rule 1
- If it is off, leave it off.
- Photograph the screen and then pull the plug
- Be very cautious if there is network visible
- Such as cables
- Blinking lights
- Get a specialist
- You are the specialist.
30Pictures of Everything
- Floor plan
- Locate all equipment
- Number all equipment on the floor plan
- You will have to reconstruct
- Photograph/Video graph
- The entire area containing HW cables
- The screen of each computer that is on.
- Much more later
31Photos
- Items and placement
- Each Item
- Placement
- Model numbers, Serial numbers
- Front
- Back
- Cables
- Anything that might be of interest.
- You only get one chance to record the original
evidence
32After Pictures of an on PC
- If the computer is a stand alone PC
- pull the plug
- Vista is different
- Do not turn it off
- If it is a laptop
- Pull the plug
- If it is still on, it has a functioning battery
- Pull the battery
- Keep the battery separate
33New World
- Have to beat the trojan defense
- Live acquisition
- Business interruption
- Live acquisition
- Network activity
- Network sniffer
34Examples Screen(s)
If the computer is on photograph the screen. If
a screen saver is evident dont wiggle the mouse
to see what is under it. Make sure it is in focus!
35Tape All Orifices with Break Away Tape
Prove No one has touched the system.
36Back
Photo of the back with all of the connections
tagged. More photos of each connection
identified. In your log both ends of each
connection should identified and cross refrenced
with your photos.
37Front Inside
38Hard Drive S/N System S/N
IDs and S/Ns are important
39Network Gear
Dont forget all the network connections and
devices. Photos should show connection labels as
well as general configuration. Multiple photos.
40Examples Serial Numbers
This is the photo of the back of the
monitor. Photos should show Model number and
serial numbers.
41Examples Media
Photograph the media. Also be able to show the
location of the media found. Cross reference to
the sketch. Also the media should be assigned a
Item .
42Evidence Collection
- Locate Evidence
- Tie to sketch
- Connectivity
- Photograph evidence
- Coordinate with the general photographer
- Assign an Item Number, tag and log in the
Evidence Inventory Form - Bag Item , Date, Time, Who
- Enter into custody log
- Transfer custody to Judisdictional Agency
43Evidence Inventory Form
44Serial Cable to Serial Port
45Network
- Photograph, diagram and label everything
- Can a live forensics capture suffice?
- Get a sniffer on the network as close to the
gateway as possible - Ethereal on a USB device
- Be prepared for this sort of situation
- Tools, tools on the USB
- Make sure the USB has enough memory for traffic
capture - Document every program you run on a host
- Document every thing you do!
46Network Spaghetti
47Tag and Bag
- Tape every drive slot shut
- Photograph, diagram and label all components
- Photograph, diagram and label all connections
- Photograph, diagram and label all cables both
ends - You will have to reconstruct
- Pack it for transport
- Keep it away from EM
- Collect all printed material
- Docs, records, notes
48Seizure
- If the network is active
- Do not power down any networking gear
- They have no hard drives
- All evidence is volatile
- If no significant network traffic disconnect from
the ISP - Using the USB device harvest the routers and
switches - Then disassemble the network
- Seize the servers and work stations
- Get the network admin to help
- They could corrupt the data, SO be careful
49Liabilities
- Criminal and civil
- Destruction of business relevant data
- Disruption of business services
- Make detailed notes of your steps
- Every step
50Other Devices
- Cell phones
- Cordless phones
- Answering machines
- Caller ID devices
- Pagers
- Fax
- Copiers
- Home electronic devices
- Printers
- CD duplicators
- Labelers
- Digital cameras, video
- GPS
- Game boxes
- PDAs
- Tivos
51Other Devices (contd)
- Magnetic strip
- Readers writers
- Make credit cards
- ID card writers
- Smart cards
- Writers readers
- RFID
- Writers readers
- Security systems
- Home grown gear
- Check writers
- Bar code writers
- Hologram writers
- Special printers
- Counterfeiting
52Cell Phones
53Cell Phones
- A treasure trove of evidence
- Numbers
- Dialed and received
- Calling card numbers
- PIN numbers
- Messages
- Voice, text
- Time lines
- All is volatile to some extent
- Internet access information
54Cell Phones
- Web surfing history
- Cookies
- Cached data
- Stored programs
- ISP information
- Subpoena ISP for customer information
- Recent syslogs
- Cell provider keeps activity records
- Subpoena information
- Tracks recent where abouts
55Cell Phones
- Architecture
- Computer
- User interface
- Transceiver
- OS
- Networking stack
- I/O
- Blue tooth
- IR
- Serial
56Seizure - On
- If it is on, leave it on
- Lockout features
- Volatile memory may contain info
- Access codes, PINs, passwords
- Recent financial transactions
- Photograph screen
- Document everything you do
- Take all power cords and docs
- Be very careful It is on
- If it does something it may construed as WIRE TAP
- Put in a Faraday bag, prevents communication with
tower
57Seizure - Off
- Tag and wrap
- Get to an expert
- Get all the ancillary gear
- Head set
- Remotes
- Serial connects
- Find service provider
- Subpoena
58Cordless Telephones
- Not as rich as cell phones
- Numbers called, stored
- Perhaps Caller ID
- Voice mail
- Recent
- May contain recoverable erased voice messages
- Be careful WIRE TAP
- On screen info may be relevant
- Photograph and document
59Answering Machines
- Same old, same old
- Numbers, times, voice content
- WIRE TAP caution if it is on.
60Caller ID Boxes
- More numbers and times
- Unplug from phone line
- WIRE TAP caution applies
- If off leave it off
- If on leave on
- Tag, photograph, document
- Does it have battery backup
- No - pull the plug
- Yes - get an expert
- Get everything
61 Pagers
- Pages
- Numeric
- Call back , codes, passwords, etc.
- Text messages Incoming Outgoing
- Info some are held on device
- Others, one must subpoena from provider
- Voice mail
- Must subpoena from provider
- E-mail
- Some held on device
- Others at provider
62 Pagers
- Architecture
- Transceiver
- CPU and memory
- Simple to elaborate user interface
- Often has a full keyboard
- Reasonable display
63 Pagers - Seizure
- On
- Caution real time communications intercept after
seizure - Get it away from suspect
- Document and photograph
- Turn it off
- Caution on battery life
- Tag and bag
- Off
- Tag and bag
64Fax, Printer, Copier, ID Printers
- Today they are converging into one machine
- Architecture
- Computer
- Ethernet
- Phone line
- Massive storage 20 Gigabytes
- Extensive display tree
65Fax Printer - Copier
66Fax, Printer, Copier, ID Printers
- Dial lists, e-mail addresses, times, logs,
headers - Stored documents
- Sent
- To be sent
- Received not opened
- Received opened
- Photographs, personal info
67Seizure
- If off leave it off.
- Tag and bag
- If on
- Photograph and document especially comms
connections - An attempt may be made to access memory and
capture the most recently printed document. - If the device is a scan first and then dispatch,
every thing is stored on the hard drive. - Disconnect the comms interfaces
- Tag and bag
- Determine phone connections
- Subpoena service provider
68Custom Stuff
- RFID readers/writers
- Credit card readers/writers
- Smart card readers/writers
- Bar code readers/writers
69Security Systems
- Ingress/egress logs time line, IDs
- Service provider
- System info
- Photograph and document location of all devices
- Text, video
- Tag and bag all stored data and recorded data.
- Detailed documentation you cant tag and bag
70Stuff
- Docs, notes, documentation, etc.
- Credit cards, smart cards, RFIDs, etc
- CDs, DVDs all media