Computer and Internet crimes are on the rise due to the fast-paced development of computer and Internet technology. Information security in Internet communications and electronic business is essential, and techniques to combat these crimes are required more and more on a daily basis. Network forensics has been an emerging research area for IT-related professionals, researchers, and practitioners since the turn of the century. Crimes committed using data embedding/mining systems, computer systems, network communications, or system detections pose a great threat to information security. Another area of focus in network forensics is how to collect and analyze digital evidence in an existing communication and network environment.
Digital forensics has many challenges, including effective evidence collection and efficient forensic procedures in data mining for evidence trace, custody of evidence chain, digital evidence management and data/image authentication and forensics, cryptography and cryptanalysis in forensics, and network forensics. The interest in digital forensics in network systems can be seen in industrial and standardization efforts accomplished in recent years, including commercial integrated forensic tools developments, the standardization efforts of text interface graphic interface to facilitate evidence mining and speed up investigations, and forensic procedures in communication and network systems. This special issue gives a state-of the-art overview of problems and solution guidelines emerging in current digital forensic research efforts for communication and network systems. A wide variety of topics are addressed, from the physical views such as forensic developments in computer and communication-link environments, to logical views programming of interface connections and testing of forensic tools; from conceptual views, such as effective management of seized evidence and diverse system operations, to user views -in security issues such as authentications, forensic procedures, and ethical and policy issues related to network forensics.