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The fire hose strikes again! My brain hurts!
-Dean Farrington, Wells Fargo

FORENSICS 508

Computer Forensic Investigations and Incident Response

6 CPE Credits per day
NOTE: This course has recently changed from the SECURITY discipline to the new FORENSICS discipline. All content remains the same.

Unpatched, unprotected computers connected to the internet are compromised in less than three days! In the commercial sector, TJ Maxx, Hannaford, and TD Ameritrade are victims of large-scale data breaches and intrusions. From these attacks, personal or account information of more than 100 million individuals has been compromised. In the government sector, cyber attacks on government agencies and contractors, originating from China, have proved difficult to suppress. In both situations, incident response and mitigation, class action lawsuits, and fines place remediation costs in the billions of dollars.

Security 508: Computer Forensics, Investigation, and Response will give you a firm understanding of computer forensics tools and techniques to investigate data breach intrusions, tech-savvy rogue employees, advanced persistent threats, and complex digital forensic cases.

Utilizing advances in spear phishing, web application attacks, and persistent malware these new sophisticated attackers advance rapidly through your network. Forensic investigators must master a variety of operating systems, investigation techniques, incident response tactics, and even legal issues in order to solve challenging cases. Security 508: Computer Forensics, Investigation, and Response will teach you critical forensic analysis techniques and tools in a hands-on setting for both Windows- and Linux-based investigations.

We will examine various investigation methodologies and techniques, discovering new places to find evidence and discover the tracks of a cyber criminal or hacker, who is trying to stay hidden inside your network.

Learning more than just how to use a forensic tool, you will be able to demonstrate how the tool functions step-by-step. You will become skilled with new tools, such as the Sleuthkit, Foremost, and the HELIX3 Pro Forensics Live CD. SANS hands-on technical course arms you with a deep understanding of the forensic methodology, tools, and techniques to solve advanced computer forensics cases.

FIGHT CRIME. UNRAVEL INCIDENTS... ONE BYTE AT A TIME. We not only teach a firm understanding of the computer forensics tools and techniques, we also teach you the legally approved forensic methodology that will result in success.

Computer Forensics Course Prerequisites

Strong recommendation: Each student should attend Security 408: Computer Forensic Essentials prior to taking this course or have equivalent digital forensic experience in the field. This course is a designed to be a perfect follow on for those that have already attended Security 408: Computer Forensic Essentials.

If you are just beginning in computer forensics or information security, then this course is not appropriate for you as the basics of computer forensics, system administration, and hacker techniques will not be covered.

You will Receive with this Course

Free SANS Investigative Forensic Toolkit (SIFT) Advanced

As a part of this course you will receive a SANS Investigative Forensic Toolkit (SIFT) Advanced, you will gain first-hand experience in collecting and analyzing evidence recovered from a system under investigation. The toolkit consists of:

  • Hard Drive USB mini adapter kit for SATA/IDE hard drives 1.8"/2.5"/3.5"/5.25" (Read and Write)
  • SANS VMware based Forensic Analysis Workstation
  • Course DVD loaded with case examples, tools, and documentation
  • Best-selling book "File System Forensic Analysis" by Brian Carrier
  • New Addition! The SIFT Kit Advanced will now include a single version Helix3 Pro that will be individually licensed to each student.
    • Works on Mac OS X, Windows, and Linux.
    • Simplified Live Analysis with both Memory and Disk Acquisition
    • Built in Memory Analysis
    • Boots most Intel x86 machines including Mac OS X

SANS Computer Forensic Website - forensics.sans.org

The learning does not end when class is over. SANS Computer Forensic Website is a community-focused site offering digital forensics professionals a one-stop forensic resource to learn, discuss and share current developments in the field. It also provides information regarding SANS forensics training, GIAC certification, and upcoming events. Visit http://forensics.sans.org. New content is added regularly, so please visit often. In addition, do not forget to share this information with your fellow forensic professionals.

This was an excellent class that lead us from manual disk operations all the way through some of the newest memory forensics.
-Douglas Couch, Purdue University

Author Statement

SANS COMPUTER FORENSICS GRADUATE THWARTS BANK HEIST. Headlines similar to these are now a reality as former students have e-mailed me regularly about how they were able to use their forensic skills in very real situations. Graduates of Computer Forensics, Investigation, and Response are the front line troops deployed when incidents occur. From stopping online bank heists to logic bombers trying to destroy data that could affect many lives, SANS forensic graduates are battling and winning the war on crime. Graduates have described solved cases involving computer break-ins, intellectual property theft, fraud, and, in some cases, internal infractions by belligerent employees. Knowing that this course places the correct methodology and knowledge in the hands of responders who thwart the plans of criminals or foreign cyber attacks brings me great comfort. Graduates are doing it. Daily. I am proud that the Computer Forensics, Investigation, and Response course at SANS helped prepare them to fight and solve crime.
- Rob Lee

Training Events By Course

FORENSICS 508 :: Computer Forensic Investigations and Incident Response
SANS Phoenix 2010 Phoenix, AZ February 14, 2010 - February 20, 2010
SANS India 2010 Bangalore, India February 22, 2010 - February 27, 2010
SANS 2010 Orlando, FL March 06, 2010 - March 15, 2010
Mentor Session - SEC508 Greeley, CO March 11, 2010 - May 13, 2010
Community SANS Boston 2010 Boston, MA March 15, 2010 - March 20, 2010
SANS vLive! - SEC 508 - Rob Lee Webcast Classroom Training, VA March 23, 2010 - April 29, 2010
SANS Northern Virginia Bootcamp 2010 Reston, VA April 06, 2010 - April 13, 2010
Mentor Session - SEC 508 Foster City, CA April 22, 2010 - June 24, 2010
EU SEC508 Turin Turin, Italy May 12, 2010 - July 14, 2010
Community SANS Virginia Beach 2010 Virginia Beach, VA May 24, 2010 - May 29, 2010
Community SANS Monterey 2010 Monterey, CA May 31, 2010 - June 05, 2010
SANSFIRE 2010 Baltimore, MD June 06, 2010 - June 14, 2010
Mentor Session - SEC 508 Troy, MI August 05, 2010 - October 07, 2010
EU Forensics 508 Vienna Vienna, Austria September 09, 2010 - November 11, 2010
Mentor Session - SEC 508 Boise, ID September 28, 2010 - November 30, 2010
SANS Secure Singapore 2010 Singapore, Singapore October 04, 2010 - October 11, 2010
SANS Middle East 2010 Dubai, United Arab Emirates October 09, 2010 - October 28, 2010
SANS Sydney 2010 Sydney, Australia November 15, 2010 - November 20, 2010
SANS London 2010 London, United Kingdom November 29, 2010 - December 04, 2010
SANS OnDemand Online Training & Assessments Anytime
SANS SelfStudy Books and .MP3s Only Anytime