Computer Science Homework Help

If able to assist please do all new work as this will be checked for plagiarism.

No directly quoted material may be
used in this project paper. Resources should be summarized or paraphrased with
appropriate in-text and Resource page citations.

Scenario Characters:

You: Information Security Specialist,
Greenwood Company

Hubert Jenkins: Human Resources
Director, Greenwood Company

Mike McBride: (former) engineer, New
Product’s Division, Greenwood Co.

**Characters will carry through
Project 1, 2 and the Final Project. However, please remain conscious of who you
are/what roll you play in EACH project and in regards to specific questions.

For the purposes of this project,
imagine you are an Information Security (InfoSec) Specialist, an employee
of the Greenwood Company and assigned to the company’s Incident Response Team.

In this case, you have been notified
by Mr. Hubert Jenkins, Human Resources Director for the Greenwood Company, that
the company has just terminated Mr. Mike McBride, a former engineer in the
company’s New Products Division, for cause (consistent tardiness and absences
from work). Mr. Jenkins tells you that at Mr. McBride’s exit
interview earlier that day, the terminated employee made several
statements to the effect of “it is okay because I have a new job already and
they were VERY happy to have me come from Greenwood, with ALL I have to offer.”

McBride’s statements made Mr.
Jenkins fear he might be taking Greenwood’s intellectual property with him to
his new employer (undoubtedly a Greenwood competitor). In particular, Mr.
Jenkins is worried about the loss of the source code for “Product X,” which the
company is counting on to earn millions in revenue over the next three
years. Mr. Jenkins provides you a copy of the source code to use in your
investigation. Lastly, Mr. Jenkins tells you to remember that the Company
wants to retain the option to refer the investigation to law enforcement in the
future, so anything you do should be with thought about later potential
admissibility in court.

The 4th Amendment to the U.S.
Constitution reads, “The right of the people to be secure in their persons,
houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall
not be violated, and no warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause,
supported by oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be
searched, and the persons or things to be seized.” While the
4th Amendment is most commonly interpreted to only affect/restrict
governmental power (e.g., law enforcement), the fact that a formal criminal
investigation is a possibility (and the Company has no desire to be named in a
civil lawsuit) means you must consider its effect to your actions.

With the above scenario in
mind, thoroughly answer the following questions (in paragraph format,
properly citing materials used in this course as well as outside research,
where appropriate).

1. Prior to any incident happening, it is important for
   any company to implement a “forensic readiness” plan. Discuss the benefits
   of a forensic readiness plan and name what you believe are the top three (3)
   requirements to establish forensic readiness within a private sector
   business. Support your answers. (Please note that while cyber security and
   digital forensics have overlaps in incident response preparation, please
   limit your answers here to forensic readiness in the digital forensic
   arena, not cyber security.)
2. Mr. Jenkins, out of concern for the theft/sharing of
   the “Product X” source code, is requesting that you or your supervisor
   start searching the areas in which Mr. McBride had access within the building.
   Can you or Mr. McBride’s supervisor search McBride’s assigned locker in
   the Company’s on-site gym for digital evidence? Support your answer.
3. Can you or Mr. McBride’s supervisor use a master key to
   search McBride’s locked desk for digital evidence, after McBride has left
   the premises? Support your answer.
4. The police have not been called or involved yet,
   however, Mr. Jenkins asks how involving the police will change your
   incident response. Develop a response to Mr. Jenkins that addresses how
   the parameters of search and seizure will change by involving the police
   in the investigation at this time. Support your answer.
5. There is a page in the Company’s “Employee Handbook”
   that states that anything brought onto the Company’s property, including
   the employees themselves, are subject to random search for items belonging
   to the Company. There is a space for the employee to acknowledge receipt
   of this notice. Mr. McBride has a copy of the handbook but never signed
   the page. Does that matter? Explain.
6. Greenwood Company uses a security checkpoint at the
   entrance to the building. A sign adjacent to the checkpoint states that
   the purpose of the checkpoint is for security staff to check for weapons
   or other materials that may be detrimental to the working environment or
   employee safety. Screening is casual and usually consists of verification
   of an employee’s Company ID card. Can security staff at this checkpoint be
   directed to open Mr. McBride’s briefcase and seize any potential digital
   evidence? Support your answer.
7. You know that it is important to document the details
   of your investigation if the company wants to insure admissibility of any
   evidence collected in the future. However, Mr. Jenkins has never heard of
   the term “chain of custody.” Write an explanation to Mr. Jenkins of what
   the chain of custody is, why it is important, and what could occur if the
   chain of custody is not documented. Support your answer.

Project Requirements:

Each questions should be answered
with a minimum of 1-2 paragraphs, so do your research, be specific,
be detailed, and demonstrate your knowledge; submit your project to the
assignments folder.

Answers to the above questions
should be submitted in a single document (.DOC/.DOCX, .RTF, or .PDF), with
answers separated and/or numbered in respect to the question, so as to make it
clear which question is being answered;

The submission should have a cover
page, including course number, course title, title of paper, student’s name,
date of submission;

Format: 12-point font, double-space,
one-inch margins;

It is mandatory that you do some
research, and utilize outside resources! You must have a reference page
that is consistent with APA citation style (see https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/01…
for help).