Utilising Reduced File Representations to Facilitate Fast Contraband Detection

Digital forensics practitioners can be tasked with analysing digital data, in all its forms, for legal proceedings. In law enforcement, this largely involves searching for contraband media, such as illegal images and videos, on a wide array of electronic devices. Unfortunately, law enforcement agencies are often under-resourced and under-staffed, while the volume of digital evidence, and number of investigations, continues to rise each year, contributing to large investigative backlogs.A primary bottleneck in forensic processing can be the speed at which data is acquired from a disk or network, which can be mitigated with data reduction techniques. The data reduction approach in this thesis uses reduced representations for individual images which can be used in lieu of cryptographic hashes for the automatic detection of illegal media. These approaches can facilitate reduced forensic processing times, faster investigation turnaround, and a reduction in the investigative backlog.Reduced file representations are achieved in two ways. The first approach is to generate signatures from partial files, where highly discriminative features are analysed, while reading as little of the file as possible. Such signatures can be generated using either header features of a particular file format, or by reading logical data blocks. This works best when reading from the end of the file. These sub-file signatures are particularly effective on solid state drives and networked drives, reducing processing times by up to 70× compared to full file cryptographic hashing. Overall the thesis shows that these signatures are highly discriminative, or unique, at the million image scale, and are thus suitable for the forensic context. This approach is effectively a starting point for developing forensics techniques which leverage the performance characteristics of non-mechanical media, allowing for evidence on flash based devices to be processed more efficiently.The second approach makes use of thumbnails, particularly those stored in the Windows thumbnail cache database. A method was developed which allows for image previews for an entire computer to be parsed in less than 20 seconds using cryptographic hashes, effecting rapid triage. The use of perceptual hashing allows for variations between operating systems to be accounted for, while also allowing for small image modifications to be captured in an analysis. This approach is not computationally expensive but has the potential to flag illegal media in seconds, rather than an hour in traditional triage, making a good starting point for investigations of illegal media

Security of Ubiquitous Computing Systems

The chapters in this open access book arise out of the EU Cost Action project Cryptacus, the objective of which was to improve and adapt existent cryptanalysis methodologies and tools to the ubiquitous computing framework. The cryptanalysis implemented lies along four axes: cryptographic models, cryptanalysis of building blocks, hardware and software security engineering, and security assessment of real-world systems. The authors are top-class researchers in security and cryptography, and the contributions are of value to researchers and practitioners in these domains. This book is open access under a CC BY license

Security of Ubiquitous Computing Systems

The chapters in this open access book arise out of the EU Cost Action project Cryptacus, the objective of which was to improve and adapt existent cryptanalysis methodologies and tools to the ubiquitous computing framework. The cryptanalysis implemented lies along four axes: cryptographic models, cryptanalysis of building blocks, hardware and software security engineering, and security assessment of real-world systems. The authors are top-class researchers in security and cryptography, and the contributions are of value to researchers and practitioners in these domains. This book is open access under a CC BY license

2020-2021 Boise State University Undergraduate Catalog

This catalog is primarily for and directed at students. However, it serves many audiences, such as high school counselors, academic advisors, and the public. In this catalog you will find an overview of Boise State University and information on admission, registration, grades, tuition and fees, financial aid, housing, student services, and other important policies and procedures. However, most of this catalog is devoted to describing the various programs and courses offered at Boise State

2018-2019 Boise State University Undergraduate Catalog

This catalog is primarily for and directed at students. However, it serves many audiences, such as high school counselors, academic advisors, and the public. In this catalog you will find an overview of Boise State University and information on admission, registration, grades, tuition and fees, financial aid, housing, student services, and other important policies and procedures. However, most of this catalog is devoted to describing the various programs and courses offered at Boise State

2019-2020 Boise State University Undergraduate Catalog

This catalog is primarily for and directed at students. However, it serves many audiences, such as high school counselors, academic advisors, and the public. In this catalog you will find an overview of Boise State University and information on admission, registration, grades, tuition and fees, financial aid, housing, student services, and other important policies and procedures. However, most of this catalog is devoted to describing the various programs and courses offered at Boise State

2021-2022 University of Nebraska at Omaha Catalog

Located in one of America’s best cities to live, work and learn, the University of Nebraska at Omaha (UNO) is Nebraska’s premier metropolitan university. With more than 15,000 students enrolled in 200-plus programs of study, UNO is recognized nationally for its online education, graduate education, military friendliness, and community engagement efforts. Founded in 1908, UNO has served learners of all backgrounds for more than 100 years and is dedicated to another century of excellence both in the classroom and in the communit