Introductory Computer Forensics

INTERPOL (International Police) built cybercrime programs to keep up with emerging cyber threats, and aims to coordinate and assist international operations for ?ghting crimes involving computers. Although signi?cant international efforts are being made in dealing with cybercrime and cyber-terrorism, ?nding effective, cooperative, and collaborative ways to deal with complicated cases that span multiple jurisdictions has proven dif?cult in practic

An Investigation of Power Saving and Privacy Protection on Smartphones

With the advancements in mobile technology, smartphones have become ubiquitous in people\u27s daily lives and have greatly facilitated users in many aspects. For a smartphone user, power saving and privacy protection are two important issues that matter and draw serious attentions from research communities. In this dissertation, we present our studies on some specific issues of power saving and privacy protection on a smartphone. Although IEEE 802.11 standards provide Power Save Mode (PSM) to help mobile devices conserve energy, PSM fails to bring expected benefits in many real scenarios. We define an energy conserving model to describe the general PSM traffic contention problem, and propose a solution called HPSM to address one specific case, in which multiple PSM clients associate to a single AP. In HPSM, we first use a basic sociological concept to define the richness of a PSM client based on the link resource it consumes. Then we separate these poor PSM clients from rich PSM clients in terms of link resource consumption, and favor the former to save power when they face PSM transmission contention. Our evaluations show that HPSM can help the poor PSM clients effectively save power while only slightly degrading the rich\u27s performance in comparison to the existing PSM solutions. Traditional user authentication methods using passcode or finger movement on smartphones are vulnerable to shoulder surfing attack, smudge attack, and keylogger attack. These attacks are able to infer a passcode based on the information collection of user\u27s finger movement or tapping input. as an alternative user authentication approach, eye tracking can reduce the risk of suffering those attacks effectively because no hand input is required. We propose a new eye tracking method for user authentication on a smartphone. It utilizes the smartphone\u27s front camera to capture a user\u27s eye movement trajectories which are used as the input of user authentication. No special hardware or calibration process is needed. We develop a prototype and evaluate its effectiveness on an android smartphone. Our evaluation results show that the proposed eye tracking technique achieves very high accuracy in user authentication. While LBS-based apps facilitate users in many application scenarios, they raise concerns on the breach of privacy related to location access. We perform the first measurement of this background action on the Google app market. Our investigation demonstrates that many popular apps conduct location access in background within short intervals. This enables these apps to collect a user\u27s location trace, from which the important personal information, Points of Interest (PoIs), can be recognized. We further extract a user\u27s movement pattern from the PoIs, and utilize it to measure the potential privacy breach. The measurement results also show that using the combination of movement pattern related metrics and the other PoI related metrics can help detect the privacy breach in an earlier manner than using either one of them alone. We then propose a preliminary solution to properly handle these location requests from background

A method for securing online community service: A study of selected Western Australian councils

Since the Internet was made publicly accessible, it has become increasingly popular and its deployment has been broad and global thereby facilitating a range of available online services such as Electronic Mail (email), news or bulletins, Internet Relay Chat (IRC) and World Wide Web (WWW). Progressively, other online services such as telephony, video conference, video on demand, Interactive Television (ITV) and Geographic Information System (GIS) have been integrated with the Internet and become publicly available. Presently, Internet broadband communication services incorporating both wired and wireless network technologies has seen the emergence of the concept of a digital community which has been growing and expanding rapidly around the world. Internet and the ever expanding online services to the wider digital community has raised the issue of security of these services during usage. Most local councils throughout Western Australia have resorted to delivering online services such as library, online payments and email accessibility. The provision and usage of these services have inherent security risks. Consequently, this study investigated the concept of a secure digital community in the secure provision and usage of these online services in selected local councils in Western Australia (WA). After an extensive review of existing literature, information security frameworks were derived from the adaptation of various resources, such as the OSSTMM 2.2 Section C: Internet Technology Security benchmark which was used as the main template. In addition, this template was enhanced into a framework model by incorporating other benchmarks such as NIST, CIS, ISSAF as well as other sources of information. These included information security related books, related ICT network and security websites such as CERT, CheckPoint, Cisco, GFI, Juniper, MS, NESSUS and NMAP together with journals and personal interviews. The proposed information security frameworks were developed to enhance the level of security strength of the email and online web systems as well as to increase the level of confidence in the system security within the selected local councils in WA. All the investigative studies were based upon the available selected local councils’ data and the associated analyses of the results as obtained from the testing software. In addition, the interpretive multiple-case study principles were used during the investigation to achieve or fulfil the purpose of this study. The findings from this study were then abstracted for use in a framework and made available for use as a model for possible adaptation and implementation to other similarly structured councils or organisations. As a result, the study confirmed that the proposed information security frameworks have the capability and potential to improve the level of security strength. In addition, the level of satisfaction and confidence of council staff of the selected local councils in WA in the system security would also be increased due to the application of these frameworks. Although these information security frameworks may be recommended as practical and supporting tools for local councils, the findings from this study were specific only to the selected local councils used in this study. Further research using other councils, may be necessary in order for the information security frameworks to be adopted within a wider range of councils or organisations in WA or elsewhere

Data collection, analysis methods and equipment for naturalistic studies and requirements for the different application areas. PROLOGUE Deliverable D2.1

Naturalistic driving observation is a relatively new method for studying road safety issues, a method by which one can objectively observe various driver- and accident related behaviour. Typically, participants get their own vehicles equipped with some sort of data logging device that can record various driving behaviours such as speed, braking, lane keeping/variations, acceleration, deceleration etc., as well as one or more video cameras. In this way normal drivers are observed in their normal driving context while driving their own vehicles. Optimally, this allows for observation of the driver, vehicle, road and traffic environments and interaction between these factors. The main objective of PROLOGUE is to demonstrate the usefulness, value, and feasibility of conducting naturalistic driving observation studies in a European context in order to investigate traffic safety of road users, as well as other traffic related issues such as eco-driving and traffic flow/traffic management. The current deliverable aims to develop an inventory of the current and appropriate data collection and data analysis equipment for naturalistic observation studies together with a theoretical analysis of the requirements for different application areas. The deliverable also discusses data quality issues and top level data base management requirements. Among the reviewed literature, maximal use is made of the extensive knowledge and experience that comes from the EU projects FESTA and EuroFOT, the 100car study and the SHRP2 preparatory safety

Secure portable execution and storage environments: A capability to improve security for remote working

Remote working is a practice that provides economic benefits to both the employing organisation and the individual. However, evidence suggests that organisations implementing remote working have limited appreciation of the security risks, particularly those impacting upon the confidentiality and integrity of information and also on the integrity and availability of the remote worker’s computing environment. Other research suggests that an organisation that does appreciate these risks may veto remote working, resulting in a loss of economic benefits. With the implementation of high speed broadband, remote working is forecast to grow and therefore it is appropriate that improved approaches to managing security risks are researched. This research explores the use of secure portable execution and storage environments (secure PESEs) to improve information security for the remote work categories of telework, and mobile and deployed working. This thesis with publication makes an original contribution to improving remote work information security through the development of a body of knowledge (consisting of design models and design instantiations) and the assertion of a nascent design theory. The research was conducted using design science research (DSR), a paradigm where the research philosophies are grounded in design and construction. Following an assessment of both the remote work information security issues and threats, and preparation of a set of functional requirements, a secure PESE concept was defined. The concept is represented by a set of attributes that encompass the security properties of preserving the confidentiality, integrity and availability of the computing environment and data. A computing environment that conforms to the concept is considered to be a secure PESE, the implementation of which consists of a highly portable device utilising secure storage and an up-loadable (on to a PC) secure execution environment. The secure storage and execution environment combine to address the information security risks in the remote work location. A research gap was identified as no existing ‘secure PESE like’ device fully conformed to the concept, enabling a research problem and objectives to be defined. Novel secure storage and execution environments were developed and used to construct a secure PESE suitable for commercial remote work and a high assurance secure PESE suitable for security critical remote work. The commercial secure PESE was trialled with an existing telework team looking to improve security and the high assurance secure PESE was trialled within an organisation that had previously vetoed remote working due to the sensitivity of the data it processed. An evaluation of the research findings found that the objectives had been satisfied. Using DSR evaluation frameworks it was determined that the body of knowledge had improved an area of study with sufficient evidence generated to assert a nascent design theory for secure PESEs. The thesis highlights the limitations of the research while opportunities for future work are also identified. This thesis presents ten published papers coupled with additional doctoral research (that was not published) which postulates the research argument that ‘secure PESEs can be used to manage information security risks within the remote work environment’

An examination of the Asus WL-HDD 2.5 as a nepenthes malware collector

The Linksys WRT54g has been used as a host for network forensics tools for instance Snort for a long period of time. Whilst large corporations are already utilising network forensic tools, this paper demonstrates that it is quite feasible for a non-security specialist to track and capture malicious network traffic. This paper introduces the Asus Wireless Hard disk as a replacement for the popular Linksys WRT54g. Firstly, the Linksys router will be introduced detailing some of the research that was undertaken on the device over the years amongst the security community. It then briefly discusses malicious software and the impact this may have for a home user. The paper then outlines the trivial steps in setting up Nepenthes 0.1.7 (a malware collector) for the Asus WL-HDD 2.5 according to the Nepenthes and tests the feasibility of running the malware collector on the selected device. The paper then concludes on discussing the limitations of the device when attempting to execute Nepenthes

Rapid Response Command and Control (R2C2): a systems engineering analysis of scaleable communications for Regional Combatant Commanders

Includes supplementary materialDisaster relief operations, such as the 2005 Tsunami and Hurricane Katrina, and wartime operations, such as Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom, have identified the need for a standardized command and control system interoperable among Joint, Coalition, and Interagency entities. The Systems Engineering Analysis Cohort 9 (SEA-9) Rapid Response Command and Control (R2C2) integrated project team completed a systems engineering (SE) process to address the military’s command and control capability gap. During the process, the R2C2 team conducted mission analysis, generated requirements, developed and modeled architectures, and analyzed and compared current operational systems versus the team’s R2C2 system. The R2C2 system provided a reachback capability to the Regional Combatant Commander’s (RCC) headquarters, a local communications network for situational assessments, and Internet access for civilian counterparts participating in Humanitarian Assistance/Disaster Relief operations. Because the team designed the R2C2 system to be modular, analysis concluded that the R2C2 system was the preferred method to provide the RCC with the required flexibility and scalability to deliver a rapidly deployable command and control capability to perform the range of military operations

Free vibration of symmetric angly-plane layered truncated conical shells under classical theory

Truncated conical shell finds wide ranging of engineering applications. They are used in space crafts, robots, shelters, domes, tanks, nozzles and in machinery devices. Thus, the study of their vibrational characteristics has long been of interest for the designers. The use of the lamination for the structures leads to design with the maximum reliability and minimum weight. Moreover, the study of free vibration of laminated conical shells has been treated by a number of researchers. Irie et al. (1982) studied free vibration of conical shells with variable thickness using Rayleigh-Ritz method of solution. Wu and Wu (2000) provided 3D elasticity solutions for the free vibration analysis of laminated conical shells by an asymptotic approach. Wu and Lee (2001) studied the natural frequencies of laminated conical shells with variable stiffness using the differential quadrature method under first-order shear deformation theory (FSDT). Tripathi et al. (2007) studied the free vibration of composite conical shells with random material properties of the finite element method. Civalek (2007) used the Discrete Singular Convolution (DSC) to investigate the frequency response of orthotropic conical and cylindrical shells. Sofiyez et al. (2009) studied the vibrations of orthotropic non-homogeneous conical shells with free boundary conditions. Ghasemi et al. (2012) presented their study of free vibration of composite conical shells which was investigated under various boundary conditions using the solution of beam function and Galerkin method. Viswanathan et al. (2007, 2011) studied free vibration of laminated cross-ply plates, including shear deformation, symmetric angle-ply laminated cylindrical shells of variable thickness with shear deformation theory using the spline collocation method. In the present work, free vibration of symmetric angle-ply laminated truncated conical shells is analyzed and displacement functions are approximated using cubic and quantic spline and collocation procedure is applied to obtain a set of field equations. The field equations along with the equations of boundary conditions yield a system of homogeneous simultaneous algebraic equations on the assumed spline coefficients which resulting to the generalized eigenvalue problem. This eigenvalue problem is solved using eigensolution technique to get as many eigenfrequencies as required. The effect of circumferential mode number, length ratio, cone angle, ply angles and number of layers under two boundary conditions on the frequency parameter is studied for three- and five- layered conical shells consisting of two types of layered materials

Survival in the e-conomy: 2nd Australian information warfare & security conference 2001

This is an international conference for academics and industry specialists in information warfare, security, and other related fields. The conference has drawn participants from national and international organisations