Do you think you have control over all your valuable assets, including trillions of dollars in transactions that take place throughout the year? If yes, I am sure you must have developed a sophisticated and multifaceted approach to cyber security beforehand, and if not, you should consider developing one. With the age of digitization, cybercrime is increasing at a dizzying rate. After all, there are tons of high school students who hack into systems in their spare time and most of today’s attacks are initiated through such tricks.
Computer forensics is a highly specialized area in which investigators are tasked with uncovering or combating cybercrime for law enforcement agencies. These professionals spend most of their time working on computers, whether in an office or a digital lab. A computer forensic expert is primarily intended to work on digital artifacts such as computer systems, hard drives, CDs and various other storage devices, electronic documents and files such as emails, JPEG images, etc.
Work description
As I said before, a computer forensic investigator is a trained professional who works with law enforcement agencies and private companies to recover all missing information from computers or any other electronic device. As an analyst, you must work within law enforcement and he or she can also test the security of the information system of a private company. In addition to this, as a computer forensic expert, you must also have excellent working knowledge of all aspects of the computer world. And if you are seriously considering a career in this field, always remember that patience and a willingness to work long hours are right for this position.
Job duties
During any criminal investigation, an analyst retrieves and examines data from computers and electronic devices for use as evidence in criminal proceedings. In the event of damage to the equipment, the computer forensic expert must have sufficient capacity to disassemble and rebuild the system in order to recover the lost data.
Once all of this is done, you should write the technical report detailing how the evidence was discovered and all the steps were taken during the recovery process.
How to make a career in computer forensics
Step 1- Get a title
To become a researcher, you must at least have a bachelor’s degree to enter the field. More and more universities offer undergraduate and graduate degrees in specialties, such as computer forensics specialties, where you can acquire the necessary skills in both investigation and use of the computer.
Step 2- Find a job
Computer forensics jobs can be found at all levels of law enforcement agencies. Starting with smaller agencies, such as city police departments, to larger ones such as national security offices, the national security agency will have a growing need for these investigations. So reach out to them and get a job.
Step 3- Advance your career with experience
Now basically there are two ways to learn, once you can learn by learning and second you can learn by doing. It’s time to explore the second way, that is, advance your career by practicing computer forensic investigation. Plus, you can even start your own consulting agency or private practices.