Call for Chapters - Guide to Mobile Forensics: On Smartphones, GPS Systems and Geo-Positional Data
Important dates
- Proposal Submission Deadline: 1 May 2012
- Notification of Proposal Acceptance: 1 June 2012
- Full Chapter Submission deadline: 15 July 2012
- Notification of Full Chapter Acceptance: 1 August 2012
- Revised Chapter Submission Deadline: 15 August 2012
- Final Submission to Publishers: 30 November 2012.
(An edited book - to be published by Springer in 2012)
- Chapter Proposals Submission Deadline: 1 May 2012
- Full Chapter submission Deadline: 15 July 2012
- Further details: http://www.geopositionalforensics.webs.com.
Introduction
Mobile forensics is one of the fastest growing areas of digital investigation in both the business opportunity and in research output. A mobile phone/device contains a range of potential evidence including call/contact data, images, recordings, videos, browsing history, app data, various documents and geo-positional data.
The complex array of mobile devices and operating systems (and versions thereof) make the investigation of mobile devices particularly complex. Furthermore, the integration of newer and more complex technologies within each new generation of mobile phone adds to this complexity. Mobile devices provide various means of providing locational information from the traditional cell-site data generated when a user connects to a network to the 'location awareness' technology that exists in most modern smartphones in the form of Geographic Positional Systems (GPS).
Such GPS technology also exists in numerous other areas of life. One of the more popular applications of the technology is in Satellite Navigation based systems. Often, there is a need, especially by law enforcement agencies, to investigate the GPS systems for geo-positional forensic purposes. However, this is a complex activity, particularly due to the fact that there is a huge variety of devices which can handle geo-positional data - each differing in terms of hardware constructs, proprietary operating systems, data storage mechanisms and interface level applications.
Research into Mobile device and geo-positional forensics, although in its infancy, can be divided into three categories:
- Legal engineering
- Operating system/application analysis
- Physical extraction and data analysis.
Legal engineering is the process of ensuring that the investigation is conducted appropriately and in a sound manner so that the results obtained can be admissible in a court of law. Operating System/Application Analysis with respect to this technology is a complex activity due to the multitude of operating systems and varieties of applications e.g. the way the data is stored on the storage media depends greatly on the file system of the operating system in question. The physical extraction and analysis of data is the process of recovering the required data from mobile/GPS device. This again is complex due to the variety of operating systems, file and storage systems as well as the memory systems used in mobile/GPS technology.
The book aims to describe, discuss and analyze mobile/Geo-positional principles, infrastructures, technologies and current practices, particularly in the context of digital investigations. The objectives are:
- To capture the state-of-the-art research and practice
- To identify research directions and technologies to facilitate more efficient investigations
- To explore issues, limitations and barriers
- To present case studies in the context of mobile device/Geo-Positional forensics and criminal investigations
- To advance the understanding of mobile device/Geo-Positional forensics.
Topics
Recommended topic areas include, but are not limited to:
Topics:
Uses of GPS in areas such as:
- Sports
- Monitoring movement of children
- Parcel and courier tracking
- Clock synchronisation
- Geotagging
- Tracking sex offenders and bailed/paroled prisoners
- Differentiated/mobility pricing to calculate insurance or road tax premiums
- Uses of geo-positional technology.
Legal engineering and the challenges presented by GPS systems in terms of:
- Processes of investigating mobile devices
- Accuracy and reliability of GPS data
- GPS tampering/anti-forensics/anti-anti-forensics
- GPS Jamming
- Improper legal engineering
- Spoof attacks on GPS systems
- Ethics of location monitoring.
Technology and Operating System/Application Analysis:
- Problems and challenges in investigating phone memory
- Cell-site analysis and challenges in processing complex data
- Assisted GPS (AGPS)
- Operating systems and file systems
- Hardware systems (Tomtom, Garmin, ProNav)
- Custom built' after-market and 'factory fit' GPS/SatNav systems.
The physical extraction and analysis of data:
- Removal and imaging of data store
- Extraction through USB or other port
- JTAG extraction
- Kernel modification.
Submission Information
Academics, researchers and industry practitioners are invited to submit 1-2 page manuscript proposals in the form of an abstract detailing the background, the objective and structure of their proposed chapter as well as a broad indication of the subject matter to be covered - by the date shown below. Authors of accepted proposals will be notified within two weeks and will be given instructions and guidelines for full chapter preparation. Full chapters should be about 10,000 words or 15-20 pages in length. All chapters will be reviewed on a double-blind basis: emphasis will be on relevance, quality and originality. Case studies are especially welcome. The book is scheduled to be published by Springer Verlag in Q3/Q4 of 2012. Proposals and final chapters (WORD or PDF format) should be sent to:
- Mr Harjinder S Lallie, University of Warwick, UK
Email: h.s.lallie@warwick.ac.uk
or
- Dr Zaigham Mahmood, University of Derby, UK
Email: z.mahmood@derby.ac.uk.
Important dates
- Proposal Submission Deadline: 1 May 2012
- Notification of Proposal Acceptance: 1 June 2012
- Full Chapter Submission deadline: 15 July 2012
- Notification of Full Chapter Acceptance: 1 August 2012
- Revised Chapter Submission Deadline: 15 August 2012
- Final Submission to Publishers: 30 November 2012.
For enquiries, please contact:
- Dr Zaigham Mahmood, University of Derby, UK
Email: z.mahmood@derby.ac.uk.
