What is encryption and why does it pose a challenge to investigators?

What will be an ideal response?


Encryption is the process of encoding regular data into a seemingly random and unintelligible, scrambled form. The program that scrambles the data will only allow a user to unscramble the information if they enter the correct user name and password. Encryption, then, is the process of scrambling data to protect it from prying eyes, while decryption is the process of decoding it so that it can be viewed again.

Encryption is a big challenge to the law enforcement community because it can range from difficult to impossible to defeat. A 1999 report from the Federal Bureau of Investigation states, "The proliferation of secure or encrypted communications and electronically stored information will make it increasingly difficult for law enforcement to obtain and decipher the encrypted content of lawfully intercepted communications and lawfully obtained electronically stored information."

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Two procedures used to preserve impressions that cannot be submitted to the laboratory are lifting and _____

Fill in the blank(s) with the appropriate word(s).

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Who has the authority to assign federal troops to aid the local police during a major crisis that the state police and National Guard can no longer handle?

A) attorney general B) Supreme Court chief justice C) governor D) sheriff E) president

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The penalties for human smuggling are typically lighter than drug smuggling

a. True b. False

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There are several types of malicious code attacks that a hacker can use to gain entry into or compromise a computer system. In this type of malicious code attack, a user launches a non- replicating malware program:

a. Trojan Horse b. Virus c. Worm d. Logic Bomb

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