United States General Accounting Office
Office of Special Investigations
GAO

February 2001



ELECTRONIC LAW ENFORCEMENT

Introduction to Investigations in an Electronic
Environment


Contains Sensitive Law Enforcement Information: Not for
Distribution Outside Federal Law Enforcement Entities

GAO-01-121G

United States General Accounting Office Office of Special
Investigations Washington, DC 20548
February 2001
Electronic Law Enforcement: Introduction to Investigations in an
Electronic Environment is published as a service to the federal law
enforcement community by GAO. The guide contains sensitive
information and is not for distribution outside federal law
enforcement organizations. The guide is comprised primarily of
resources available from various law enforcement organizations. It
is intended to be a useful aid for criminal investigators by
discussing the various tools and other resources available for
assisting investigations involving electronic evidence.
Chapters 1, 2, and 3 discuss the conduct of an investigation in
an electronic environment:


•
investigating illegal online activity,


•
the Internet as an investigative tool, and



•
search and seizure methods involving electronic
evidence.

Chapter 4 discusses impediments to electronic investigations
posed by


•
cryptography and encryption and


•
the anonymity that the Internet can provide.


The guide's appendixes augment these areas by citing applicable
statutes (app. I); by providing links to selected Internet
resources (app. II); and by discussing basic cryptography and
encryption (app. III), digital signature and public-key
infrastructure (app. IV), and biometrics as an identification and
authentication technology (app. V). We hope that the glossary of
terms will provide a useful reminder of related items as they
reappear in the guide's discussions and in the criminal
investigator's work.
The information provided in this guide is current as of the date
of this publication. It is intended both as an introduction for the
criminal investigator concerning issues of electronic evidence and
as an aid for the investigator in developing basic investigative
strategies. We are providing the guide in hard copy and on a
compact disk (CD) for agency duplication as needed. However, please
do not release the document or the CD outside the federal law
enforcement community. If you wish to access the encrypted guide on
GAO's Web site, please send your request via e-mail to
digitalguide@gao.gov. We will assess your request and inform you of
how access will be provided. The guide is also available in an
encrypted format at the Cybercop Secure Communities VPN, a secure
Web site which is a joint project of Cybercop.org and the ESP Group
at https://cybercop.esportals.com.
We wish to acknowledge the significant assistance provided by
others to the development of this guide. Chief among these were
Kevin Manson, Instructor, Financial Fraud Institute, Federal Law
Enforcement Training Center; the Small Business Administration's
Counsel to the Inspector General; and special agents of the
National Aeronautics and Space Administration; the U.S. Attorney's
Office, Southern District of New York; the Federal Bureau of
Investigation; and the Department of the Treasury, Office of the
Inspector General for Tax Administration.
We request your assistance in periodically updating and
improving the guide. Please submit updates and suggestions on how
to better meet users' needs to the e-mail address above or by fax
to (202) 512-3086. You may also write to us at the Office of
Special Investigations, U.S. General Accounting Office, 441 G.
Street NW, Suite 6K17S, Washington D.C. 20548-4243. Robyn D.
Stewart, M. Jane Hunt, and Keith A. Rhodes were key contributors to
the guide.

Robert H. Hast Managing Director Office of Special
Investigations

To Gain Access to the Guide
If you wish to access the encrypted guide, as stated in the
preceding letter, send your e-mail request to digitalguide@gao.gov.
Include your name, law enforcement affiliation, and office
telephone number in the request. We will assess your request and
inform you of how access will be provided.