Cybersecurity: Analysis and Application of ProDiscover Forensic Toolkit

Abstract

The world has in the recent past experienced rapid development in digital technology. However, as most organizations across the world continue to introduce digital technology into their operating system, issues of cybercrime have been on the rise and are one of the major threats to the progress and growth of many business firms. The application of the digital forensic concept can therefore be helpful in curbing problems associated with cybercrime. ProDiscover is one of the forensic tools which enable professionals in computing to locate all data in computing disk, including those that had previously been deleted. ProDiscover Forensic tool recovers deleted files, examines slack space, and dynamically allows previews, image captures, and searches of the Hardware Protected Area (HPA) using its technology. This paper sought to establish the application and effectiveness of ProDiscover Forensic in investigating cybercrime. For the purposes of this paper, efficiency will be defined as the proportion of input required by the ProDiscover system compared to its performance and output in addressing and managing workplace cybercrime. Alternatively, effectiveness will be defined as the degree and capacity to which the system will succeed in improving forensic investigation and mitigating cybersecurity issues in the workplace. That is, the capabilities of ProDiscover Forensic with regards to investigating and punishing cybercrime offence at the workplace. The researcher investigated a case in which a company by the name Jonson Corp. had been complaining about one of their staff, a Mr John who had been using the computer system for viewing and subsequently downloading pornographic images. The suspect’s floppy disk of 1.44 MB capacity that had been found in his drawer was used to retrieve all the deleted files. In overall, ProDiscover was able to retrieve the BEAUTY1.jpg and BEAUTY2.jpg images that had been erased from the soft disk. Therefore, the ProDiscover tool can be applied by organizations to enhance their information security functions, especially during a forensic investigation.