The corporate world is a cutthroat place, but combining it with the digital world adds another dimension of risk entirely. Businesses of all kinds are constantly at risk from various kinds of cybercrime, ranging from data breaches and hacking attempts to acts of corporate espionage, and even sabotage from within the company itself. Managed IT support plays an important role in keeping companies and their precious information secure. However, once the damage from a cybercrime has been done, you sometimes need an expert to investigate exactly what went wrong and who was responsible. That’s when you need Digital Forensics – a vital, but often poorly understood, area of IT support. This article will better acquaint you with the service, and why you might need it.

What Is Digital Forensics?

Cybercrime is nothing new to the business or legal worlds. The FBI’s IC3 received 2,825 complaints of ransomware attacks in 2023 alone, with these attacks causing losses of over $59.6 million. With most devices connected to the internet and constantly processing massive amounts of sensitive data, a breach can come from anywhere.

It’s not just computers that are vulnerable, but also smaller devices like smartphones, tablets, printers, and routers. Even your car’s digital systems aren’t safe from being compromised. Following a cyberattack, network takedown, or similar mishap, how do you even begin to find out what went wrong?

Digital forensics is the answer. This branch of IT support gathers evidence and tracks every action taken by an end user. This information is then used to build a legal case, where possible, and can be used to tighten security and prevent a repeat disaster.

Digital Forensics as IT Support

A good IT support provider will include digital forensics as part of their service offering. When it comes to digital security, taking preemptive steps to prevent breaches isn’t enough. Responsive action is just as important. And if your preemptive security is breached you’ll need a team that knows how to identify the source.

Some of the main issues addressed under the broad umbrella of digital forensics are:

Combating Crime

Digital forensics plays a key role in protecting your business and its employees from cybercrime, including:

  • Network breaches and data theft – Any network, be it local or global, is under constant threat of attack and infiltration. If a breach occurs, data can be stolen and sensitive data leaked. Forensic experts will identify the source of the breach, the scale of the attack, and those responsible. These investigations also help prevent future attacks.
  • Theft of intellectual property – Intellectual property is valuable data, and therefore a prime target for industrial espionage. Should this precious data ever be compromised, forensic experts can help track down those responsible.
  • Cybercrime – Ransomware, fraud, trojans, and all forms of hacking constitute cybercrimes. Forensics will do the dirty work of sifting through the necessary files and devices to identify, analyze, and preserve digital evidence, and prepare it for legal action.
  • Violent crime – For burglaries, assault, and even murder cases, information from digital devices in the form of phone logs, video footage, and workplace access records can be used to bring the perpetrators to justice.
  • Employee misconduct – Sometimes the threat can come from within, with employees responsible for data breaches and theft rather than external bad actors. Forensics can determine every action of end-users on the network, and use this information to gather evidence against them. This is true not only for cybersecurity, but other workplace issues like harassment and white-collar offences, too.

Lighter Tasks

Digital forensics is useful in a criminal context, but there are plenty of other less flashy (but no less vital) uses for this service, including:

  • Compliance – With so many data regulations which vary from state to state, digital forensic experts can keep you and your information compliant. Services provided range from proper staff security training to conducting regular audits of existing systems and practices.
  • Mergers and acquisitions – When companies merge, typically a lot of data changes hands. Digital forensics ensures that incoming files are both safe and secure. If networks are involved, they are also thoroughly inspected for any weak spots or prior breaches.
  • Insolvency – After insolvency is declared, a forensics service can search data and devices for any evidence of foul play or fraud.

The Branches of Digital Forensics

All these different roles mean that digital forensics specialists are proficient in many or all of the following fields:

  • Computer and mobile forensics – Recovering data and storage evidence from a variety of devices, whether mobile or stationary.
  • Forensic data analysis (FDA) – This branch of forensics investigates the recovered data, be it located on persistent storage like hard drives, or on volatile storage like RAM.
  • Network forensics – Given the volatile nature of network access and data transmission, this branch is more focused on proactive observation and detection of wrongdoing.
  • Database forensics – Changes to databases can be an indication of fraud. This branch tests the validity of users with access to databases, and sifts through entries and edits to spot irregularities.

Why Would You Need Digital Forensics?

So, with all the above in mind, why would a dedicated digital forensics expert be useful for your business? In some cases, attempting to capture the perpetrator of a data breach after the fact might seem futile. It’s a wide world out there, after all.

Nevertheless, there are many reasons that this subset of IT support can prove invaluable to your business:

  • Protect your interests – No matter the nature or scale of your business, fraud and data theft can be devastating to your reputation and security. Digital forensics can safeguard your corporate interests from these risks.
  • Catching criminals – Regardless of whether they’re employees within your company or based in another country, forensics can track end users that have wronged you and possibly others in the process. The evidence gathered will help build legal cases against the perpetrators.
  • Assist larger efforts – In large-scale attacks, cybercrime can affect multiple businesses and parties. Law enforcement efforts will benefit from the valuable information that digital forensics can provide, which will assist in the broad legal action against the perpetrators.
  • Proper prosecution – Legal proceedings are much more likely to succeed with a solid body of evidence behind them. Digital forensics experts know the right data to collect and how to preserve it properly for maximum effectiveness.

Get the IT Support With the Extra Edge

If you’re in the Winston-Salem, Charlotte, or Greensboro areas and are looking to protect your corporate interests both proactively and reactively, then you need an IT support expert that can handle both ends of a demanding job.

Kelly Office Solutions has extensive expertise in digital forensics and has been serving the communities of North Carolina for over 70 years. Combined, that makes us the ideal partner to keep your valuable information safe, both today and in the future. Let us help you.