Development and Delivery of Coursework:
The Legal/Regulatory/Policy Environment of Cyberforensics
 

John W. Bagby
Professor of Information Sciences and Technology
College of Information Sciences and Technology
Co-director Institute for Information Policy
The Pennsylvania State University
301C IST Bldg
University Park, PA 16802 USA
jbagby@ist.psu.edu

John C. Ruhnka
Professor of Law and Ethics
Academic Director of the Bard Center for Entrepreneurship
Graduate School of Business Administration
University of Colorado at Denver and Health Sciences Center
1250 14th St., Suite 242
Denver, CO 80217-3364 USA
John.Ruhnka@cudenver.edu

ABSTRACT

This paper describes a cyber-forensics course that integrates important public policy and legal issues as well as relevant forensic techniques. Cyber-forensics refers to the amalgam of multi-disciplinary activities involved in the identification, gathering, handling, custody, use and security of electronic files and records, involving expertise from the forensic domain, and which produces evidence useful in the proof of facts for both commercial and legal activities. The legal and regulatory environment in which electronic discovery takes place is of critical importance to cyber-forensics experts because the legal process imposes both constraints and opportunities for the effective use of evidence gathered through cyber-forensic techniques. This paper discusses different pedagogies that can be used (including project teams, research and writing assignments, student presentations, case analyses, class activities and participation and examinations), evaluation methods, problem-based learning approaches and critical thinking analysis. A survey and evaluation is provided of the growing body of applicable print and online materials that can be utilized. Target populations for such a course includes students with majors, minors or supporting elective coursework in law, information sciences, information technology, computer science, computer engineering, financial fraud, security and information assurance, forensic aspects of cyber security, privacy, and electronic commerce.

Keywords: Cyberforensics; Electronic Data Discovery; Electronic Records Management; Pre-Trial Discovery; Admissibility of Electronic Evidence; Information Assurance, Security and Risk Analysis