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Memory Acquisition in Forensic

Memory acquisition in digital forensics involves capturing a snapshot of a computer's volatile memory (RAM) to analyze evidence of malicious activity. It is crucial for detecting active threats and understanding the system's state, but poses challenges such as system instability and large data volumes. Specialized tools and techniques are required for effective memory acquisition and analysis.

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12 views2 pages

Memory Acquisition in Forensic

Memory acquisition in digital forensics involves capturing a snapshot of a computer's volatile memory (RAM) to analyze evidence of malicious activity. It is crucial for detecting active threats and understanding the system's state, but poses challenges such as system instability and large data volumes. Specialized tools and techniques are required for effective memory acquisition and analysis.

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komalbagle64
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In digital forensics, "memory acquisition" refers to the process of capturing a snapshot of a

computer's volatile memory (RAM) to create a memory dump, which can then be
analyzed to uncover evidence of malicious activity, running processes, network
connections, and other data that might not be readily visible on the hard drive, as this
information can be lost when the computer is powered off; essentially, it's the act of collecting
data from a system's active memory for forensic investigation. [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]

Key points about memory acquisition: [1, 2, 6]


●​ Volatile nature: Memory is considered "volatile" because the data stored in RAM is lost
when the power is turned off, making it crucial to capture a memory dump while the
system is running. [1, 2, 6]
●​ Forensic tools: Special tools are used to capture memory dumps, often requiring
kernel-level access to access and copy the entire memory space. [1, 2, 7]
●​ Analysis with memory forensics: Once acquired, the memory dump is analyzed using
specialized software (like Volatility or Rekall) to extract relevant information like running
processes, loaded modules, network connections, and potential malware artifacts. [1, 3,
8]

Why is memory acquisition important? [1, 3, 4]


●​ Catching active threats: Memory analysis is particularly valuable for detecting and
investigating active malware or ongoing malicious activity that might not leave traces on
the hard drive. [1, 3, 4]
●​ Investigating system state: It provides a snapshot of the system's current state,
including running applications, network connections, and user activity at a specific point in
time. [1, 3, 9]
●​ Identifying hidden artifacts: Malware often resides primarily in memory, making memory
analysis essential for finding hidden malicious code. [1, 3, 5]

Challenges in memory acquisition: [1, 2, 6]


●​ System instability: Improper memory acquisition techniques can destabilize the running
system, potentially corrupting the captured memory image. [1, 2, 6]
●​ Anti-forensic techniques: Some malware can actively attempt to hinder memory
acquisition by detecting forensic tools or modifying memory contents. [1, 2, 7]
●​ Large data volumes: Memory dumps can be large files, requiring efficient storage and
analysis methods. [1, 2, 7]

Generative AI is experimental.

[1] https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/computer-science/memory-acquisition
[2] https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2214785321038633
[3] https://www.varonis.com/blog/memory-forensics
[4] https://www.granthaalayahpublication.org/ijetmr-ojms/index.php/ijetmr/article/download/IJET
MR18-CINSP-13/515/
[5] https://www.adfsolutions.com/adf-blog/memory-forensics-101-the-basics-you-need-to-know-f
or-effective-digital-forensics-investigations
[6] https://www.oreilly.com/library/view/the-art-of/9781118824993/c04.xhtml
[7] https://indjst.org/download-article.php?Article_Unique_Id=INDJST11736&Full_Text_Pdf_Dow
nload=True
[8] https://www.sans.org/blog/memory-forensic-acquisition-and-analysis-101/
[9] https://intezer.com/blog/incident-response/memory-analysis-forensic-tools/

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