Cybersecurity Forensic Analyst

There are various cybersecurity careers that an individual can choose from. A cybersecurity career that I am going to be discussing is a Cybersecurity Forensic Analyst.

Cybersecurity Forensic Analyst Job Description

A cybersecurity forensic analyst is a job title that entails an individual that analyzes digital evidence and investigates cybersecurity incidents to discover information that will be in support of network vulnerability and system mitigation. According to the Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency, “This role analyzes digital evidence and investigates computer security incidents to derive useful information in support of system/network vulnerability mitigation.” (CISA Cyber Defense Forensics Analyst). A Cybersecurity Forensic Analyst may utilize experiments, research methods, and field studies when conducting their research. An experiment that a cybersecurity forensic analyst may utilize is entitled a Quasi-Experiment. A Quasi-Experiment is used to study the interactions between an individual and technology. This experiment is beneficial because it helps a cybersecurity forensic analyst understand how an individual interacts with technological devices, such as computers, smartphones, tablets, etc. If an individual uses a computer to cyberbully or harass others, a cybersecurity forensic analyst can use that digital evidence to investigate the cybersecurity incident to find answers to why the individual would cyberbully innocent victims. A research method that a cybersecurity forensic analyst may utilize is entitled Archival Research. Archival Research is defined as online records. These online records consist of emails, social media posts, anything that is posted on the internet, etc. A cybersecurity forensic analyst may utilize these online records that contain malicious information as digital evidence to investigate cybersecurity incidents, such as cyberbullying, cyber stalking, etc. Lastly, a field study that a cybersecurity forensic analyst may conduct is entitled a Honeypot Field Study. A Honeypot Field Study entails a group of social science researchers that create a cyberspace platform where they analyze how cyber trespassers behave when they enter that specific cyberspace. A cybersecurity forensic analyst may utilize this field study to catch a cyber criminal hacking into a computer system in real time and can shut down the cybersecurity incident. A cybersecurity forensic analyst may investigate digital evidence to find out why an individual would hack into a computer system in real time.

Social Science Principles that a Cybersecurity Forensic Analyst utilizes

A cybersecurity forensic analyst utilizes social science principles as well. Social science principles that a cybersecurity forensic analyst utilizes consist of Parsimony, Ethical Neutrality, and Determinism. The first social science principle that a cybersecurity forensic analyst utilizes is entitled Parsimony. Parsimony is a social science principle that illustrates how scientists should keep their explanation as simple as possible. Although the role of a cybersecurity forensic analyst is to investigate cybersecurity incidents, it is crucial that they keep their explanations simple and to the point because there are many reasons as to why an individual commits a cybersecurity incident. It is important that a cybersecurity forensic analyst’s explanation is simple and is pertinent to the cybersecurity incident at hand. The second social science principle that a cybersecurity forensic analyst utilizes is entitled Ethical Neutrality. Ethical Neutrality is a social science principle that entails how scientists should adhere to the ethical standards when conducting their research. Although an individual has committed a malicious cybersecurity incident, it is imperative that a cybersecurity forensic analyst protects the individual’s rights and privacy. The third social science principle that a cybersecurity forensic analyst utilizes is entitled Determinism. Determinism is a social science principle that encompasses behavior that is caused, influenced, or determined by an individual’s previous life experiences. An example of this would be an individual getting bullied when they were a child. As a result of this, an individual may use the internet to cyberbully innocent victims to make them feel the hurt the individual felt when the individual got bullied at a young age. A cybersecurity forensic analyst can use this social science principle to understand the backstory behind why individuals would cyberbully their victims.

Key Concepts from class that a Cybersecurity Forensic Analyst utilizes

Key concepts from class that apply to a cybersecurity forensic analyst’s job consist of the Psychodynamic Theory, Neutralization Theory, Behavioral Theory, and Social Science Disciplines (Psychology). The first key concept from class that applies to a cybersecurity forensic analyst’s job is entitled the Psychodynamic Theory. The Psychodynamic Theory entails that an individual’s previous life experiences can influence behavior. An example of this would be an individual cyberbullying others. An individual may participate in cyberbullying others because the individual was bullied when they were a child. This results in the individual wanting innocent victims to feel the hurt the individual felt when the individual had to endure bullying at a young age. When a cybersecurity forensic analyst is turning this cybersecurity incident into digital evidence, it is important that a cybersecurity forensic analyst keeps this theory in mind when investigating this cybersecurity incident. The second key concept from class that applies to a cybersecurity forensic analyst’s job is entitled the Neutralization Theory. The Neutralization Theory describes how an individual knows what’s right and what’s wrong. This results in the individual rationalizing their behavior before committing a cybercrime. A type of neutralization is termed Denial of Injury, which entails how no one was injured. According to Bernard, “Sykes also collaborated with the American sociologist David Matza on studies of delinquency. In the first of two coauthored articles on the subject, “Techniques of Neutralization: A Theory of Delinquency” (1957), Matza and Sykes proposed a “drift theory” (also known as neutralization theory), according to which delinquents use a series of justifications to neutralize their deviant behaviour. Typical justifications include passing the blame to others, insisting that the victim was not harmed, believing that the victim deserved the outcome (e.g., vandalism), and arguing that others have committed worse acts.” (Bernard, 2023). When a cybersecurity forensic analyst is investigating a cybersecurity incident, it can reveal why an individual committed a crime, such as knowing that the crime they committed was wrong. The third key concept from class that applies to a cybersecurity forensic analyst job is entitled the Behavioral Theory. The Behavioral Theory describes how an individual learns behavior from their surrounding environments, such as at home, at school, around friends, social media, etc. If an individual sees their friend committing a cybercrime, the individual will participate in committing a cybercrime as well. If a cybersecurity forensic analyst compares the individual’s cyber crime to the friend’s cyber crime, they are going to see that the friend committed the cybercrime and has a history of committing cyber crimes, whereas the individual has only committed one cybercrime. The fourth key concept from class that applies to a cybersecurity forensic analyst’s job is entitled Social Science Disciplines (Psychology). Psychology is a social science discipline. Psychology is the study of a human’s mind and behavior. When an individual endures bullying at a young age, they may have feelings of pent-up anger and resentment. An individual may use those feelings to cyberbully victims on the internet. A cybersecurity forensic analyst can look at this piece of digital evidence and can understand this piece of digital evidence from a Psychological perspective.

How does a Cybersecuriy Forensic Analyst’s job relate to two marginalized groups?

A cybersecurity forensic analyst’s career relates to two marginalized groups. The two marginalized groups consist of victims of cyberbullying and school-aged children. The first marginalized group are victims of cyberbullying. An individual may cyberbully a victim due to their race, gender identity, etc. Victims of cyberbullying may experience challenges in the future. Victims of cyberbullying may experience low self-esteem issues and other mental health issues that consist of depression and anxiety. Victims of cyberbullying may also feel negative emotions that consist of sadness, anger, and frustration. Victims of cyberbullying may even feel alone as well. According to Social Media Victims Law Center, “The effects of cyberbullying can be devastating for the victims. They may experience various negative emotions, such as sadness, anger, frustration, and humiliation. They may also feel isolated and alone as if they have no one to turn to.” (Effects of Cyberbullying, 2023). A cybersecurity forensic analyst’s job is to protect the cyberspace, analyze cybersecurity incidents, to ensure that the rate of cyberbullying and cyber crimes reduces, and that justice is served to the victims of cyberbullying. The second marginalized group is school-aged children. School-aged children are the most vulnerable for cyber attacks, such as cyberbullying. Cyberbullies may personally attack a school-aged child due to their age, gender, race, health conditions, etc. Whereas cyberbullies may attack a school-aged child based on their situation, such as their geographical location, parent-child relationship, etc. According to a group of journal authors, “Personal factors referred to age, gender, online behavior, race, health conditions, past experiences of victimization, and impulsiveness, while situational factors consisted of parent-child relationship, interpersonal relationships, and geographical location.” (Zhu et al., 2021). It is important to note that when a cybersecurity forensic analyst is analyzing these cybersecurity incidents that it is mainly school-aged children that are targets of cyberbullies and can face a number of challenges that consist of Psychological problems and Physical problems that consist of Low-self esteem, sleeping problems, headaches, etc. (Effects of Cyberbullying, 2023). A cybersecurity forensic analyst can use these challenges that victims of cyberbullying face and turn them into digital evidence to find out why school-aged children are targets for cyberbullies to come after them.

Conclusion

A cybersecurity forensic analyst relates to society by protecting cyberspace and protecting individuals from future cyberattacks. A cybersecurity forensic analyst investigates cyber crimes that have been committed and utilizes digital evidence to problem solve an explanation as to why an individual would commit a malicious cyber crime These cybercrimes can consist of terrorism, cyberbullying, identity theft, harassment, cyber stalking, etc. Without cybersecurity forensic analysts, many of these cybersecurity incidents may have gone unnoticed or not even been addressed. The cyberspace would have also been a negative space for individuals to navigate due to the rate of cyber crimes. Thanks to cybersecurity forensic analysts, the cyberspace will be a safe space where individuals can use the internet without having to worry about falling victim to a cyber crime.

References

Bernard, T. J. (2023, October 25). Gresham M. Sykes. Encyclopædia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/biography/Gresham-M-Sykes#ref940800

CISA Cyber Defense Forensics Analyst. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency CISA. (n.d.-a). https://www.cisa.gov/careers/work-rolescyber-defense-forensics-analyst#:~:text=This%20role%20analyzes%20digital%20evidence,Computer%20Forensic%20Analyst

Effects of Cyberbullying. Social Media Victims Law Center. (2023, September 18). https://socialmediavictims.org/cyberbullying/effects/#:~:text=Teenagers%20who%20are%20victims%20of,%2C%20anxiety%2C%20and%20suicidal%20thoughts.

Zhu, C., Huang, S., Evans, R., & Zhang, W. (2021, March 11). Cyberbullying Among Adolescents and Children: A Comprehensive Review of the Global Situation, Risk Factors, and Preventive Measures. Frontiers in Public Health. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8006937/

carolinebutler

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