National Computer Forensic Institute Opens in Alabama
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security and Alabama state officials have opened the National Computer Forensic Institute in Hoover, Ala., to assist in computer forensics and digital evidence analysis. The institute will be developed by the U.S Secret Service and is funded partly by the department?s National Cyber Security Division.
It will be a national cybercrimes training facility, as well. "The same technologies that are a part of every-day life in the 21st century are routinely used by criminal groups for their nefarious activities," Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff said. "This institute will turn the tables on these criminal groups and equip law enforcement with sophisticated skills to use the same technologies in combating criminal activity."
"Today's high-tech environment presents new challenges to law enforcement as cyber criminals exploit computers and the Internet to threaten our banking, financial, and critical infrastructures," said Secret Service Deputy Director Brian Nagel. "As a result, law enforcement has been propelled into technologically non-traditional terrain requiring highly specialized skills and innovative applications of traditional investigative strategies. It is imperative to address the changes in technology by providing training on cyber-investigative techniques and by sharing current expertise among federal, state, and local officers."