| Digital evidence storage and handling pose significant challenges for federal, state and local law enforcement agencies. The challenges include acquiring and processing massive amounts of digital evidence, maintaining the integrity of the evidence and storing the evidence for extended periods of time.;This dissertation proposes a digital evidence custodian model for the storage and handling of digital evidence. The model uses network storage technologies to centralize data storage in a digital evidence storage locker and specifies roles for forensic examiners, evidence custodians and investigators to facilitate evidence access and processing. Digital evidence stored in the locker can be accessed by examiners and investigators without raising questions related to evidentiary integrity. Furthermore, remote connections to the storage locker support distributed access to evidence, enabling multiple law enforcement agents to collaborate on cases. An implementation developed for the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation (OSBI) documents the utility of the digital evidence custodian model in a large-scale law enforcement setting.;This dissertation also includes an analysis of the workflow of the cyber crimes unit of a metropolitan police department. The analysis provides a framework for law enforcement agencies seeking to develop digital forensic capabilities and to create in-house procedures for processing digital evidence. |
