1. Student Employability
Learning Artefacts
to Enhance
Student Employability
in Computer Forensics
David Chadwick, Diane Gan, Dimitris Frangiskatos C-SAFE Centre Computer - Security, Audit, Forensics Education

2. What is digital forensic science?
Forensic science is the application of a broad spectrum of sciences to answer questions of interest to a legal system .
Digital forensics encompasses the recovery and investigation of material in devices capable of storing digital data.

3. Why Do Digital Forensics Students Need Help Getting Employment?
Not many jobs directly in digital forensics.
- mainly in police (80% of work paedophilia cases)
- some in defence e.g. GCHQ (counter-terrorism)
Forensics is important additional skill to many professions
- lawyers
- computer auditors
- security companies
Students have distorted perspective on jobs
- CSI effect!!
- Think investigations straightforward – in fact they’re looking for bits of many needles in many haystacks

4. Case Study ‘problem: PBL
In PBL (Problem Based Learning) the focus is on :
organising the curricular content around problem scenarios rather than subjects/disciplines
having problem scenarios that reflect real world situations
encouraging students to learn by themselves as they seek further knowledge
having staff engaged as ‘learning facilitators’ rather than ‘front of the class’ pedagogists
encouraging students to learn together and share the further knowledge research process

5. TWO Employment enhancing artefacts for CV and Interview
REAL-WORLD INPUTS
CASE STUDY ‘problem’
TWO Employment enhancing artefacts for CV and Interview
Guidance Software
(EnCase Forensic Tool):
Encase Tutorials
IT Forensics Practitioner:
Guest Lecture
CASE STUDY PROBLEM
Stage 1: Forensic Analysis using EnCase
Stage 2: Writing Forensic Report
Stage 3: Giving Expert Witness Testimony
ENCASE CF1 QUALIFICATION
Set of tutorials
CF1 Certificate
CASE STUDY PORTFOLIO
Report + Tutor Feedback
Testimony Tutor Feedback
Testimony Law student feedback

6. Case Study ‘problem: Fuzziness
Look in file ABS.doc and find the ‘secret’ message
Here are many files – find the one that has the ‘secret’ message
Here are three files – find the hidden picture that is split across all three + +
Here are many files – find which files have hidden evidence on their own or with others +

7. CASE STUDY ‘problem’: Fuzziness
Data Completeness
i.e. all data for solving problem immediately available
Data Incompleteness
i.e. some data for solving problem is missing or needs integrating from different sources
Data Relevancy
i.e no red herrings
Non-fuzzy
Trivial and simple: useful for teaching new tools
Semi-fuzzy
Data Irrelevancy
i.e red herrings
Highly Fuzzy
Complex and demanding: Research and intelligence required
24/11/2018

8. Courtroom scenario: Expert Witness Testimony
So how to communicate?
Lecturer
Forensic student
Law students gave extra credibility
“techie” language was questioned e.g.
Forensic student:
“I’m an expert in steganography …”
Law student:
“You’re an expert on a type of dinosaur?”
Law
Students

9. RESULT: TWO employment-enhancing artefacts
This will look good on my CV
This will look good at interview
CF1 certificate shows I have professional competence in industry-standard tool
- Attractive to employers
Portfolio shows I can investigate fuzzy problems methodically and present evidence clearly

10. RESULT: Feedback on the Exercise
Law
Student
Forensic
Student
I’m much more professional now
I really
learned something
Digital Forensics Students said:
70% said they really enjoyed
Prospective employer said:
‘never encountered students doing such relevant & useful work’
Law Students said they learned:
expert witness x-examination
computer jargon
that digital crime is complex