Digital Archaeology: The Art and Science of Digital Forensics

10. E-mail Forensics

Throughout history, people have used various methods of exchanging messages over long distances. In the days of the Roman Empire, long-distance runners acted as couriers, carrying messages back and forth. Trained pigeons have transported notes attached to their legs, and more recently, the U.S. Postal Service has served as an agent for transporting letters back and forth. In the Electronic Age, it is the wonderful world of electronic mail—or, more simply, e-mail—that serves as the transport mechanism for the vast majority of today’s written communications.

The relationship of e-mail to crime is convoluted and appears in many forms. Direct criminal activities involving e-mail include phishing attempts, e-mail fraud, and extortion. ...