Experts reviews of a cloud forensic readiness framework for organizations

Abstract

Cloud computing has drastically altered the ways in which it is possible to deliver information technologies (ITs) to consumers as a service. In addition, the concept has given rise to multiple benefits for consumers and organizations. However, such a fast surge in the adoption of cloud computing has led to the emergence of the cloud as a new cybercrime environment, thus giving rise to fresh legal, technical and organizational challenges. In addition to the vast number of attacks that have had an impact on cloud computing and the fact that cloud-based data processing is carried out in a decentralized manner, many other concerns have been noted. Among these concerns are how to conduct a thorough digital investigation in cloud environments and how to be prepared to gather data ahead of time before the occurrence of an incident; indeed, this kind of preparation would reduce the amount of money, time and effort that is expended. As a number of cloud forensics challenges have not received enough attention, this study is motivated by a particular gap in research on the technical, legal and organizational factors that facilitate forensic readiness in organizations that utilize an Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) model. This paper presents a framework with which to investigate the factors that facilitate the forensic readiness of organizations. This framework was identified by critically reviewing previous studies in the literature and by performing an in-depth examination of the relevant industrial standards. The factors were comprehensively studied and extracted from the literature; then, the factors were analysed, duplicates were removed, and the factors were categorized and synthesized to produce the framework. To obtain reliable results, the research method involved two steps: a literature review, followed by expert reviews. These techniques help us paint a comprehensive picture of the research topic and validate and confirm the results.