MSAB Digital Forensics Glossary
Key Terms and Definitions
Welcome to Our Digital Forensics Glossary — A resource for clear, concise definitions of key terms used in digital forensic investigations. This glossary includes terminology used in the field of smartphone investigations, mobile data extraction, and the analysis of digital evidence from mobile devices.
As mobile phones become central to cybercrime and digital investigations, it’s essential to understand critical concepts such as IMEI, mobile data acquisition, app artifacts, and SIM card analysis. You’ll also find definitions of broader digital forensics terms like hash values, metadata, and chain of custody — all explained in a straightforward, accessible format. Whether you’re a mobile forensics specialist, law enforcement officer, cybersecurity professional, or student, this glossary offers up-to-date explanations to help you navigate the rapidly evolving field of mobile forensics.
Yara
A pattern-matching tool used in forensics to identify and classify malware by creating rules based on file characteristics, aiding in threat detection and analysis.
Read full termYellow Dog Linux
A Linux distribution historically used on PowerPC systems, occasionally encountered in forensics when investigating older or specialized devices for evidence.
Read full termYield Farming – Crypto Forensics
A cryptocurrency practice of lending or staking assets to earn rewards, analyzed in forensics to trace financial flows or investigate DeFi-related fraud.
Read full termYottabyte (YB)
A massive unit of digital storage equal to 10^24 bytes, referenced in forensics when discussing theoretical data scales or future challenges in big data investigations.
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