Book Image

Digital Forensics with Kali Linux - Third Edition

By : Shiva V. N. Parasram
Book Image

Digital Forensics with Kali Linux - Third Edition

By: Shiva V. N. Parasram

Overview of this book

Kali Linux is a Linux-based distribution that's widely used for penetration testing and digital forensics. This third edition is updated with real-world examples and detailed labs to help you take your investigation skills to the next level using powerful tools. This new edition will help you explore modern techniques for analysis, extraction, and reporting using advanced tools such as FTK Imager, Hex Editor, and Axiom. You’ll cover the basics and advanced areas of digital forensics within the world of modern forensics while delving into the domain of operating systems. As you advance through the chapters, you'll explore various formats for file storage, including secret hiding places unseen by the end user or even the operating system. You’ll also discover how to install Windows Emulator, Autopsy 4 in Kali, and how to use Nmap and NetDiscover to find device types and hosts on a network, along with creating forensic images of data and maintaining integrity using hashing tools. Finally, you'll cover advanced topics such as autopsies and acquiring investigation data from networks, memory, and operating systems. By the end of this digital forensics book, you'll have gained hands-on experience in implementing all the pillars of digital forensics: acquisition, extraction, analysis, and presentation – all using Kali Linux's cutting-edge tools.
Table of Contents (24 chapters)
1
Part 1: Blue and Purple Teaming Fundamentals
7
Part 2: Digital Forensics and Incident Response Fundamentals and Best Practices
10
Part 3: Kali Linux Digital Forensics and Incident Response Tools
15
Part 4: Automated Digital Forensics and Incident Response Suites
18
Part 5: Network Forensic Analysis Tools

The importance of RAM, the paging file, and cache in DFIR

OSs can use a portion of the hard disk as an extension of RAM. This is referred to as virtual memory and is usually a good idea if a computer or laptop has limited RAM. Although the hard drive is much slower than the RAM, the swap file or paging file on the disk can store files and programs that are being accessed less, leaving the RAM available to store data that is frequently accessed. This process involves the OS swapping pages of data less frequently used and moving data to the dedicated paging file area on the hard drive.

In forensics investigations, the paging file is very important to us. Although not as volatile as RAM itself due to being stored on the hard disk, it is a hidden file in Windows called pagefile.sys, and should always be inspected using tools of your choice, as this file may reveal passwords for encrypted areas, information from sites visited, documents opened, logged-in users, printed items, and so...