1. What role did computer forensics play in the high-profile cases of the New York subway bomber and the San Francisco Bay oil spill?

2. Why might computer forensics be more effective at preventing crimes than other forms of criminal investigation?

3. In addition to computer-related training, what other education and background would be ideal for someone who wants to make a career in computer forensics?

On September 8, 2009, 25-year-old airport limousine driver and former coffee cart vendor Najibullah Zazi rented a car and drove from Denver to New York City.His car was laden with explosives and bomb-building materials. According to the Department of Justice, Zazi’s target was the New York City subway system. It is believed Zazi was planning to work with other operatives over the weekend and detonate the bomb the following week. However, after learning he was under investigation, Zazi dumped the evidence and fled back to Denver. On September 19, the FBI arrested him on charges of willfully making false statements to the FBI. Computer forensics investigators with the FBI found bomb-making instructions and Internet searches for hydro chloric acid on Zazi’s laptop computer. Investigators also processed video surveillance of Zazi buying large quantities of bomb-making materials at a beauty supply store. Zazi had also emailed himself detailed notes on constructing explosives during an Al Qaeda training session on constructing explosives that he had attended in Afghanistan in 2008. In February 2010, Zazi pled guilty to conspiracy to use weapons of mass destruction against persons or property in the United States, conspiracy to commit murder in a foreign country, and providing material support to Al Qaeda.

In November 2007, a 900-foot-long container ship traveling through dense fog struck the Bay Bridge in San Francisco Bay. Approximately 58,000 gallons of fuel oil seeped through the 100-foot gash in the hull into the water. Over 2,500 birds died during the spill, and wildlife experts estimated that a total of 20,000 perished as a result of the long-term chemical effects of oil exposure. Prosecutors alleged that the captain had failed to use radar and positional fixes or other official navigation aids. However, the crime extended beyond the captain’s negligence. Computer forensics investigators found that computer navigational charts had been doctored after the crash, and falsified records, such as passage planning checklists, had been created on ship computers after the crash. The captain was eventually sentenced to 10 months in federal prison after pleading guilty to violating the Clean Water Act and the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. In 2009, the ship’s management company, Fleet Management Company Ltd., agreed to pay $10 million in compensation for violating the Oil Pollution Act of 1990. These two high-profile cases illustrate the central role computer forensics investigators are playing in criminal investigations today. These investigators are at work in both criminal and civil cases exploring everything from murder, kidnapping, and robbery to money laundering and fraud to public corruption, intellectual property theft, and destruction of property by disgruntled employees. Even parties to divorce cases are now making use of computer forensics experts to uncover evidence of infidelity or locate joint funds that have been hidden by one of the spouses. Yet perhaps the greatest promise of this fast-developing field of investigation is its potential for preventing crime. On November 18, 2010, police arrested a Florida college student, Daniel Alexander Shana, who had posted on Facebook his plans for carrying out a Columbine High School–type massacre to target people who he felt had bullied him. He boasted that he had purchased a semi automatic pistol and had registered for a firearms license. Students viewing his Facebook posts reported them to authorities.