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Wani, Mohamad Ahtisham; Bhat, Wasim Ahmad; Dehghantanha, Ali
doi: 10.1080/00450618.2018.1533038pmid: N/A
Anti-forensic techniques aim to prevent, hinder or corrupt the forensic process of evidence acquisition, its analysis, and/or its admissibility. File systems are at the spotlight of almost every forensic investigation. The Linux B-tree file system (Btrfs) offers a paradigm shift in file system design by providing simple administration, end-to-end data integrity, and immense scalability without loss of performance. However, the potential of Btrfs for forensics examination and its resistance to anti-forensic activities was not investigated before. This paper covers this gap by analysing the forensics value of Btrfs and its robustness against anti-forensics activities. The experimental results suggest that Btrfs offers strong hurdles to many anti-forensic attacks. These include making it difficult to securely wipe files, disallowing hiding data in reserved locations of the file system data structures, and so on. Based on our findings, even a corrupt Btrfs volume could contain remnants of deletion of small files, hidden data in reserved locations and magic string forgery. Furthermore, forensic tools meant for Btrfs investigation must be augmented to support automated forensic analysis of possible hidden data in boot sector, file slack, volume slack and mount-point directories, MAC-DTS forgery, and sparse files.
Kozeretska, Oksana I.; Maistrenko, Oleksandr M.; Serga, Svitlana V.; Dombrovskyi, Ivan V.; Ostapchenko, Lyudmyla I.; Demydov, Sergiy V.; Kozeretska, Iryna A.
doi: 10.1080/00450618.2019.1581255pmid: N/A
In this study we characterized allele frequencies of 15 autosomal STR loci, including 13 CODIS (D8S1179, D21S11, D7S820, CSF1P0, D3S1358, TH01, D13S317, D16S539, vWA, TPOX, D18S51, D5S818, FGA) and two additional loci (D2S1338 and D19S433) in 200 citizens of Kyiv region using an AmpFlSTR Identifiler Plus Kit. No deviations from the Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium were detected for any loci. The highest observed heterozygosity was detected for D18S51 (0.855) while the lowest was found for TPOX (0.575) loci. The population parameters in the sample from Kyiv are similar to the sample of the entire of Ukraine. Comparison of allele frequencies with the sampled population of Ukraine (excluding Kyiv region) showed a difference in the D21S11 locus.
Focardi, M.; Puliti, E.; Grifoni, R.; Palandri, M.; Bugelli, V.; Pinchi, V.; Norelli, G.A.; Bacci, S.
doi: 10.1080/00450618.2019.1567811pmid: N/A
Hanging deaths are common and characterized by their brief survival time. Macroscopic and histological exams are frequently unable to distinguish vital lesions from post-mortem lesions. This pilot study investigates the dendritic and mast cells in hanging marks to establish vitality lesions. Skin specimens were taken from vital wounds, ligature marks, and post-mortem lesions. Cryosections were stained for haematoxylin eosin, avidin, CD1a and MHC class II+ antigens and examined under light or fluorescence microscopies. Using digitized photomicrographs the images were then analysed. Differences were found in the Langerhans cells and epidermal MHC density, the vital lesions and ligature marks and the other specimens. The results may prove useful in forensic practice when neither macro nor microscopic objective evidence of vitality is available. The results could very possibly support the hypothesis that the amount of time it takes to die from hanging is less than currently believed (< 5 min).
Zhang, Kui; Zhan, Mengjun; Deng, Liping; Qiu, Li-rong; Deng, Zhen-hua
doi: 10.1080/00450618.2018.1541193pmid: N/A
Individual identification is one of the most challenging aspects of forensic science. The aim of this study was to develop population-specific discriminant function equations and stature prediction equations for predicting sex and stature from measurements of the pelvis in a contemporary Chinese population by using 3D CT (three-dimensional computed tomography) pelvic images. The stepwise analysis of all 13 measurements yielded a sex classification accuracy rate of 99.5 % and a sex bias of 0.1 %. The sub-pubic angle is a reasonably accurate single parameter, with the accuracy of 97.4 % in sex determination. Stature was estimated using the equations that involved the dimensions of a single variable. The accuracy of stature prediction from univariate analysis ranged from 5.06 to 5.53 cm in males, and from 4.62 to 5.09 cm in females. Multiple regression equations were presented, with the accuracy of stature prediction being 4.51 cm for males and 4.22 cm for females. This article provides a reliable alternative for sex diagnosis from reconstructed 3D CT pelvic images and it could be effectively used in forensic cases for a Chinese population. Furthermore, the equations presented for stature estimation in this study should be used as alternatives in forensic cases when long bones were unavailable for stature estimation.
Hsiao, Yu-Ting; Meng, Hsien-Hui
doi: 10.1080/00450618.2018.1553207pmid: N/A
Owing to their wounding potential, airguns are regarded as controlled firearms in some countries. In this study, aluminium witness plates were used to evaluate the wounding potential of airguns. A series of firing tests were conducted using six airguns and ten types of projectiles. The velocity and energy density (ED) of the projectiles fired at the witness plates were determined using a ballistic chronograph and high-speed camera. The ballistic limits (V 50 and ED 50) of the witness plate for the different projectile types were also obtained. V 50 and ED 50 were found to be within 86.0–167.0 m/s and 13.2–21.6 J/cm2, respectively. The percentage differences between V 50 and the predicted threshold velocity for skin perforation were found to be <13%. These results demonstrate the suitability of the witness-plate method for evaluation of wounding potential. A Student’s t-test of the ED 50 between paired projectiles further indicated a statistically significant influence of the projectile material and structure on ED 50, attributable to the deformation of the projectiles and the local-heat effect of the witness plates. The obtained results indicated that steel ball- and lead ball-type projectiles are most suitable for the wounding potential evaluation of smooth-bore BB guns and airguns with rifled barrels.
Collins, Sharni; Stuart, Barbara; Ueland, Maiken
doi: 10.1080/00450618.2019.1593504pmid: N/A
The ability to monitor changes in human decomposition chemistry provides a potentially valuable tool for an understanding of the fate of human remains. This study reports the findings of an experimental study of a decomposing human cadaver investigated using infrared spectroscopy. This study was carried out at the Australian Facility for Taphonomic Experimental Research (AFTER) with a donated human cadaver clothed in cotton. An examination of the fluid retained by the cotton revealed that lipids and proteins, and their corresponding decomposition products, could be identified for the different stages of decomposition. The mechanisms for the changes to the lipid and protein components can be inferred from the spectroscopic changes observed and correlated with the corresponding decay processes observed for the cadaver. This study demonstrated that the use of this non-destructive technique allows the components of the decomposition fluid produced by decaying remains to be simultaneously monitored over time.
Altinsoy, Hasan Baki; Alatas, Ozkan; Gurses, Murat Serdar; Turkmen Inanir, Nursel
doi: 10.1080/00450618.2018.1545868pmid: N/A
Our aim is to analyse proximal tibial epiphysis and distal femoral epiphysis patterns according to the Dedouit staging method using 1.5 T magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) with fast spin echo (FSE) for proton density images. In addition, we discuss the results in relation to the literature for forensic age estimation. In this study, images belonging to 195 female and 277 male patients ranging in age from 10 to 30 years who had a knee MRI for any reason in our Radiology Clinic between January 2014 and December 2016 were retrospectively evaluated. According to the Dedouit et al. five-stage method, they were evaluated by two radiologists. The κ value was calculated for intra-observer and inter-observer compliance. The evaluation of knee epiphysis patterns from MRI is an alternative, efficient, radiation-free and non-invasive method that is helpful in forensic age estimation. In particular, stage 5 in distal femoral epiphysis can determine the 21st year of life in both sexes, and proximal tibial epiphysis could present evidence of age 18 in males. It should be used for evaluation in addition to other methods for determining skeletal system maturity.
Tan, Kiat Hing; Abu Bakar, Noor Hidayat; Wong, Kong Yong
doi: 10.1080/00450618.2019.1586996pmid: N/A
This study aims to investigate the cross-language relationship between Chinese Hanzi and Roman handwriting systems in the Chinese community of Klang Valley. The samples were examined under characteristics such as slant, alignment, ending strokes, words dimensions, spacing, letter stalks, the height of t-bars and margins for both languages. Spearman’s Rank Correlation and McNemar Bowker tests were applied for the continuous and descriptive data analysis respectively due to their significance association using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) software, version 23. The results showed a significant strong positive correlation between the left margins (R 2 = 0.936, p < 0.001) and widths (R 2 = 0.734, p < 0.001). Moderate positive correlation was obtained between heights (R 2 = 0.690, p < 0.001), right margins (R 2 = 0.626, p < 0.001), stalks (R 2 = 0.586, p < 0.001), height of t-bars (R 2 = 0.499, p < 0.001) and intrawords (R 2 = 0.410, p < 0.001). The McNemar Bowker test revealed a significant association between slants (X(6) = 42.702, p < 0.001), ending strokes (X(3) = 38.400, p < 0.001) and baseline (X(10) = 21.904, p = 0.016). The findings were statistically significant (p˂0.05) for all the means measured. Based on the result, an association of handwriting between the two languages exists, despite the structural variation in the writings. This indicates that there is a correspondence in the handwriting of an individual when using two different language systems.
doi: 10.1080/00450618.2018.1561948pmid: N/A
Many jurisdictions around the world allow an ‘enhanced’ version of indistinct audio to be admitted, along with a transcript, to assist the trier of fact in understanding the content of forensic recordings. Typically, ultimate evaluation of the effect of the ‘enhancing’ relies simply on the jury or other listeners’ impression as to whether the audio sounds ‘clearer’ than the original. A recent article reported results of two experiments showing that listeners’ subjective impressions give a surprisingly unreliable indication of the objective effects of ‘enhancing’. The current article reports a new experiment that adds weight and detail to previous demonstrations that enhancing can make audio ‘sound clearer’ without making it more reliably intelligible. It further demonstrates how ‘enhancing’ can interact with priming to make phrases suggested by a transcript seem more plausible than they do in the original, even when the suggestion is unreliable and misleading. It is recommended that courts should insist on far better regulation of the use of ‘enhanced’ audio.
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