A Digital Forensics Framework For Vehicles

Abstract

Vehicle digital forensics is a rapid growing sub domain of cyber forensic investigations on vehicles involved in crimes or in accidental cases. It focuses on collection, extraction and analysis of the digital evidence preserved from a vehicle subject.

Modern vehicles are becoming more and more computers themselves by incorporating many advance technologies like ECUs, Infotainment system, ADAS system, Telematics and GPS systems, ABS, Traction and Rollover control etc., 

On one side these advanced enhancements push more safety and convenience while other side they bring new vulnerabilities and challenges in digital forensic investigations. While a normal personal car may have around 40 ECUs, a luxury or sports car may have even more than 150 ECUs and this number itself vary for heavy vehicles used in long distance transport along with millions of lines of codes for enabling the overall integrated vehicle system. It further fuels the complexity of a vehicle internal digital and electronic system and imposing many challenges in their forensic examination even more when no fully functional and well accepted vehicular forensic framework is in place.

In this paper we propose a comprehensive digital forensic framework for modern vehicles. Vehicle digital forensic framework will provide a systematic guideline to conduct digital forensic investigation on any subject vehicle by acquiring data from advance digital and electronic equipment and sensors such as Event Data Recorder (EDR), Telematics and GPS systems etc., It will also provide invaluable insights for law enforcement and accident reconstruction experts. This framework aims to provide actionable insights to investigators, ensuring accurate and efficient resolution for digital forensic investigations of modern vehicles.