This glossary explains technical computer forensics terms in accessible language. Each definition includes the applicable Quebec legal framework and concrete examples.

🛡️ Digital Evidence & Integrity

• Digital Evidence — Any digital information that can serve as evidence
• Chain of Custody — Documentation of evidence transfers and handling
• Data Integrity — Assurance that data has not been altered
• Metadata — Hidden data describing a file’s origin and history
• Evidentiary Value — Persuasive weight of evidence in court
• SHA-256 Hash — Unique digital fingerprint to verify integrity
• Forensic Copy — Bit-by-bit image of a data storage device
• Authenticity — Proof that data is what it claims to be

⚖️ Legal & Expertise

• Expert Witness — Specialist testifying before the court
• Expert Report — Document presented to the court by the expert
• Counter-Expertise — Expertise commissioned by the opposing party
• Computer Forensics Expert — Professional in forensic analysis
• Forensic Computing — Discipline governing digital evidence use
• Computer Forensics — Science of analyzing digital traces
• Evidence Preservation — Protection of evidence integrity before analysis
• IT Litigation — Legal dispute involving technology
• Data Theft — Unauthorized access or copying of confidential data

🔒 Cybersecurity

• Malware — Malicious software designed to damage or infiltrate
• Ransomware — Malicious software demanding ransom
• Phishing — Email-based social engineering attack
• Spyware — Activity monitoring software
• Stalkerware — Surveillance spyware
• Cyberattack — Malicious computer attack
• Computer Intrusion — Unauthorized system access

📱 Mobile & Computer Forensics

• Mobile Data Extraction — Evidence collection from phones
• Mobile Forensics — Mobile data extraction and analysis
• Deleted Message Recovery — Restoration of erased communications
• Bit-by-Bit Image — Exact copy of a storage device
• Deleted Files — Recovery of erased data
• Evidence Admissibility — Conditions for evidence to be accepted

🌐 Networks & Communications

• IP Address — Device network identifier
• Geolocation — Geographic location via digital data
• Email Headers — Technical information tracing an email’s origin
• Spoofing — Digital identity impersonation

📲 Social Media & Crypto

• Social Media Extraction — Evidence collection from social platforms
• Online Defamation — Reputation attacks on the internet
• Online Harassment — Intimidation via digital platforms
• Cryptocurrency — Decentralized digital currency
• Cryptocurrency Tracing — Blockchain transaction tracking

✍️ Signatures & Documents

• Electronic Signature — Legally valid digital signature
• Signature Falsification — Digital signature forgery
• Document Falsification — Fraudulent document modification

This glossary is regularly updated. Last update: February 2026.