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Blockchain in Digital Forensics

target”. Miners must generate a PoW that covers entire data blocks. It is

quite unpredictable which node in the network will generate the new block

due to the low chances of successful generation.

Proof of Stake – As mentioned earlier, PoW generation consumes a lot of

time, computing power and electricity. On the contrary, Proof of Stake

(PoS) doesn’t require high computing power. In the PoS mechanism, the

amount of bitcoin a miner possesses is compared with the resource. For

example, only 1% of the PoS blocks can be mined by a miner possessing

1% of the bitcoin. This mechanism is useful in preventing malicious attacks

on the network, as it’s quite costly to execute an attack, and the attacker

himself suffers from his own attack.

14.4  MANAGING CHAIN OF CUSTODY FOR

DIGITAL EVIDENCE: ETHEREUM

In cyberfraud detection, digital data plays an important role because it connects indi­

viduals to illegal activity. Therefore, it is critically important to ensure that digital

information is complete, genuine and auditable as it passes through various layers of

hierarchy in the custody chain during forensic cybercrime. The capability of block­

chain technologies to allow an interconnected view of transactions back to their

origin gives the forensic community tremendous hope. In today’s modern world, the

value of digital documentation for people connected to cybercriminals is also rising

exponentially. Digital evidence poses its own special chain of custody (CoC) chal­

lenges. Custody chain can be described as a mechanism for preserving and record­

ing the history of digital documentation. Proof from digital forensics moves from

the first responder to higher authority in charge of managing cybersecurity analysis

across various layers of hierarchy. Forensic Chain (Lone & Mir, 2019) is a block­

chain-based custody chain maintenance and traceability solution. Blockchain is a

data system that generates a digital recording and storage history (events/records)

that is exchanged across the public computing network by all participating parties.

Blockchain uses encryption to secure the recording and recording operations (events/

records) in the network, thereby providing an audit trail.

With regard to the CoC, blockchain capabilities may generate documents con­

cerning access to tamper-proof evidence, especially in combination with crypto­

graphic hacking and encryption. The proof to be stored is first safely crypted and

has blockchain power built on. The cryptographic data will only be available to

the desired party on the blockchain but would simultaneously record the accessing

party’s time, date and likely user ID and apply it to the blockchain. The blockchain

is read in a manner that resembles how the bitcoin blockchain can be decoded by a

special feature. This blockchain feature enables courts and relevant workers to study

the historical custody chain without requiring access to data themselves.

The following are the benefits of using blockchain in the digital forensics domain:

• Proof may be obtained, stored and checked.

• Where the mechanism was initially entered may track the route of any inci­

dent or operation.