What is Forensic Readiness

In a bid to discover, uncover, and stamp out digital crime while ensuring information security and assurance, there is a need to investigate the crime once it has taken place. This will help trace the criminals and also secure an organization against future attacks. Forensic readiness entails that an organization be at alert in terms of digital evidence collection and storage – that is, collecting and storing such evidence constantly in a forensically sound manner, not just when the need for such evidence arises. In the event litigation arises or is anticipated, digital evidence may need to be reviewed by the opposing parties prior to court proceedings to assess quality of the evidence; this is eDiscovery. This chapter explores eDiscovery and forensic readiness. Digital evidence for eDiscovery needs to be forensically sound and provided in a timely and efficient manner - forensic readiness helps to ensure this. This chapter seeks to establish how forensic readiness is relevant to the eDiscovery process.