The rapid proliferation of Cloud Computing and Big Data has brought a paradigm shift in digital forensics. This comprehensive analysis delves into digital forensics' intricate and evolving intersection with Cloud Computing and Big Data environments. As organisations and individuals increasingly rely on cloud-based solutions and generate vast volumes of digital information, robust digital forensic practices have become paramount.

This study critically evaluates the field's current state, identifying the challenges, legal considerations, and opportunities that this convergence presents. The paper examines the multifaceted challenges encountered in Cloud Computing and Big Data environments, including privacy concerns, and the legal and ethical complexities arising from investigations spanning multiple jurisdictions.

Furthermore, the paper discusses laws and regulations in India and international contexts that play a crucial role in governing digital forensics in cloud and Big Data settings. As digital technology becomes more integral to daily life, ensuring digital investigations' efficiency, accuracy, and integrity is of utmost importance. The study provides valuable insights to guide practitioners, researchers, and policymakers in navigating the complex terrain of preserving and investigating digital evidence in the cloud and Big Data era, thereby shaping the future of digital forensics.

Introduction
The environment of digital information processing, exchange, and storage has completely changed with the introduction of Cloud Computing and the growth of Big Data. Large amounts of data are now created and kept on the cloud, presenting new potential and problems for digital forensics due to these technical breakthroughs. Effective digital forensic procedures are critical in cloud computing and big data settings as enterprises, organisations, and people depend increasingly on cloud-based solutions.

Digital forensic

Digital forensics is collecting, preserving, analysing, and presenting digital evidence. It is a scientific discipline that uses specialised tools and techniques to recover and examine data from various digital devices, including computers, smartphones, tablets, and storage media.[1] Digital forensics investigates multiple crimes, including cybercrime, financial crime, and fraud. It is also used to investigate civil disputes, such as employment disputes and divorce cases. A digital forensic investigation aims to identify, preserve, and collect digital evidence in a forensically sound way.

This means that the evidence must be collected and handled in a way that does not alter or destroy it. Once the evidence has been collected, it is analysed to identify relevant information. This information can reconstruct events, identify suspects, and gather evidence to support criminal or civil charges. Digital forensics is a complex and challenging field, but it is essential for investigating and prosecuting crimes in the digital age.

Cloud Computing and Big Data Environment

Cloud computing and big data bring unprecedented opportunities to digital forensics. This also holds for digital forensics, where gathering and sorting through massive amounts of data can be made more efficient with digital technology.[2] Within the field of digital forensics, big data forensics involves identifying, collecting, validating, analysing, interpreting, and presenting massive datasets from several evidence sources to quickly ascertain the facts of a crime.[3]

Since cloud computing relies heavily on network access and network forensics deals with forensic investigation on public and private networks, cloud forensics is a subset of network forensics. [4]

Challenges faced
A few challenges faced include volume. The large volume of data generated in cloud computing environments can make collecting and preserving all relevant evidence challenging.[5] The next issue is the velocity. The high velocity of data in cloud computing environments can make it difficult to identify and analyse relevant evidence before it is overwritten or deleted.[6] The variety of data formats in cloud computing environments can make it difficult to develop and use digital forensic tools and techniques.[ challenging7]

The need to protect the privacy of individuals and organisations can make it challenging to investigate cloud computing environments.[8] The primary and last issue is the legal and ethical challenges. The legal and moral difficulties of investigating cloud computing environments in multiple jurisdictions can make it challenging to conduct digital forensic investigations.[9]

The following qualities should be included in an extensive data forensic solution. These include expandable storage and processing capacity to manage different data volumes, handle large amounts of unstructured, semi-structured, and structured data and analyse it, and link data from various situations and sources.

Legislatures

Foreign laws: Regarding digital forensics in cloud computing and big data environments, several rules and regulations must be considered. For example, the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) in the European Union requires that personal data be protected and processed securely and transparently.[10]

The Cloud Computing Act in the United States addresses the legal challenges that arise from cloud computing, including data privacy and security concerns. Additionally, the Electronic Communications Privacy Act (ECPA) regulates the interception of electronic communications and sets guidelines for government access to digital information.[11]

Indian Laws:

Information Technology Act, 2000 provides for investigating and prosecuting cyber crimes, including those committed in cloud computing and big data environments. Acte also sets out guidelines for collecting, preserving, and presenting electronic evidence in court.

• Section 43A[12]: This section allows law enforcement agencies to intercept, monitor, and record electronic communications without the consent of the users. It will enable digital evidence collection from cloud-based communications platforms, such as email and social media.
• Section 69[13]: The government may issue directions to intermediaries, such as cloud service providers, to block access to websites or remove content deemed illegal or harmful.
• Section 70[14]: This section allows law enforcement agencies to access and seize electronic data stored on computers and other digital devices. Law enforcement agencies can access and seize digital evidence from cloud-based servers and storage devices.
• Section 79A[15]: This section empowers the Central Government to appoint an Examiner of Electronic Evidence who shall be a person with such qualifications and experience as may be prescribed by the Central Government. He shall be responsible for providing expert opinion on electronic form evidence before any court or other authority.
• Section 80[16]: This section provides that any person who knowingly or intentionally destroys, alters or suppresses any computer source document or electronic record to prevent the same from being produced before any court to receive it in evidence, or to cause any damage to the public or any person, shall be liable to be punished.
   

Indian Evidence Act, 1872: The Indian Evidence Act is a general law that governs the admissibility of evidence in court. It includes provisions for the admissibility of electronic evidence.

• Section 65A[17]: This section allows electronic records to be admitted as evidence in court.
• Section 65B[18]: This section defines an electronic record as any record or part of a record which is produced by, stored in or transmitted through electronic means. This definition is broad enough to encompass all types of digital evidence.
• Section 65C[19]: This provision is essential because it allows digital evidence to be presented to the court in an easy-to-understand and interpretable way.
• Section 65D[20]: This provision is essential because it allows experts in digital forensics to testify in court about the digital evidence they have collected and analysed.
   

The IEA also contains several general principles relevant to digital forensics, such as relevance, authenticity, and hearsay. It is important to note that the IEA is a general law that governs the admissibility of digital evidence in court. It does not contain any specific provisions on digital forensics.
  Cloud Computing Policy, 2015: The Cloud Computing Policy sets out the government's vision for cloud computing in India. It also includes provisions for data protection and security in cloud computing environments.

• Section 3.2: The provision states that cloud service providers must implement appropriate security measures to protect customer data. This includes implementing measures to preserve customer data's confidentiality, integrity, and availability.[21]
• Section 3.3: This section states that cloud service providers must cooperate with law enforcement agencies to investigate cybercrimes. This cooperation includes providing law enforcement agencies access to customer data upon receipt of a valid court order.[22]
• Section 5.2: This section states that the government may issue directions to cloud service providers to block access to websites or remove content deemed illegal or harmful.[23]
• Section 6.1[24]: This section states that the government may appoint a Cloud Security Auditor to audit the security practices of cloud service providers to ensure the implementation of appropriate security measures to protect customer data.

In addition to the above provisions, the CCP also contains several other provisions relevant to digital forensics, such as the provisions on data localisation and data sovereignty.
  Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines) Rules, 2011: The Act requires intermediaries, such as cloud service providers, to cooperate with law enforcement agencies to investigate cybercrimes.

• Rule 3(4)[25]: This rule requires that you retain all information relevant to an investigation for 90 days. It is essential to ensure the availability of digital evidence for forensic analysis.
• Rule 5(1)[26]: This rule requires intermediaries to disclose information to law enforcement agencies upon receipt of a valid court order. This provision allows law enforcement agencies to obtain digital evidence from intermediaries during a criminal investigation.
• Rule 5(5)[27]: This rule requires intermediaries to remove or restrict access to content deemed illegal or harmful upon receipt of a valid court order. This provision allows law enforcement agencies to preserve digital evidence relevant to a criminal investigation.

Additionally, the Indian Penal Code, 1860, includes provisions for the punishment of cyber crimes, such as hacking and identity theft, which are applicable in digital forensics investigations. [28]

Furthermore, the Reserve Bank of India has issued guidelines on managing information security risks in cloud computing. These guidelines set out the requirements for banks and financial institutions to ensure the security and confidentiality of customer data in the cloud.[29]

Comparable Jurisdictions With Indian Laws And Other Foreign Laws

In India, data localisation is required for a specific type of data, whereas in other countries, it is not a requirement. India has strong privacy protection guidelines under the IT Act. Law enforcement agencies can obtain digital evidence upon receipt of a valid court order. However, it may be more difficult for foreign law enforcement agencies to obtain proof from cloud service providers based in India.

Law enforcement agencies in other countries can obtain digital proof upon receipt of a valid court order. Specific laws of foreign countries, such as the US CLOUD Act, give law enforcement agencies more power to obtain evidence from cloud service providers, even if the evidence is stored in another country.

Analysis
Cloud computing cannot be utilised to store data connected to healthcare, business, or national security, as these industries require audit and regulatory compliance, and it does not have the capability of conducting adequate forensic investigations.[30] To preserve and supply the kinds of evidence that allow us to obtain all of the actions of cloud users by implementing such an architecture.[31]

The statutes mentioned above support the admissibility of such evidence. The Information Technology Act, 2000 (IT Act) recognises electronic records as admissible evidence in court. This includes data stored on cloud servers and big data platforms. The Indian Evidence Act, 1872 (IEA) also contains several provisions relevant to the admissibility of cloud computing evidence.

For example, Section 65B of the IEA defines an electronic record as any record or part of a record which is produced by, stored in or transmitted through electronic means. This definition is broad enough to encompass all types of evidence of cloud computing. Section 65C of the IEA allows for the production through computer output. This provision is essential because it will enable cloud computing evidence to be presented to the court in an easy-to-understand and interpretable way. Section 65D of the IEA allows for the production of electronic evidence by way of oral testimony.

This provision is essential because it will enable experts in digital forensics to testify in court about the cloud computing evidence they have collected and analysed. In addition to the IT Act and the IEA, several other laws and regulations in India are relevant to the admissibility of cloud computing evidence.

These include the Cloud Computing Policy, 2015, and the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines) Rules, 2011. These laws and regulations provide a more comprehensive framework for collecting, preserving, analysing, and presenting cloud computing evidence in court.

Conclusion
To promote a deeper understanding of the nuances of the field and to shape the future of digital investigations in a world that is becoming more and more data-centric, a thorough examination of the crucial issues surrounding digital forensics in Cloud Computing and Big Data environments is imperative in this era of unprecedented digital growth and technological convergence.

Everyone is now a digital marketer/data wizard. This trend indicates the growing importance of understanding digital data and technologies, even in forensic sciences. As cloud computing and big data provide businesses with more data, forensics experts face new challenges of sifting through this information effectively. Most importantly, the digital technology tools at our disposal can be used to increase efficiency. In contrast, shortcuts in the digital world could save us time and the cognitive energy spent on unimportant decisions.

This would be critical in a forensic environment, where time, accuracy, and efficiency are the utmost priority. To tackle this accuracy and efficiency, the Indian Legislature is growing towards making better laws. Indian Laws do cover a substantive portion of such lacuna. The loopholes in the current legislature are many, however, Indian statutes are flexible and are open to interpretation, which allows the judiciary to hold criminals accountable for their crimes and offences.

References:

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3. https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-658-03371-2_17
4. Barreno, M. et al.: "Open Problems in the Security of Learning". In: D. Balfanz and J. Staddon, eds., AISec, ACM, 2008, p.19-26
5. FBI: "RCFL Program Annual Report for Fiscal Year 2008", FBI 2008. http://www.fbi.gov/news/stories/2009/august/rcfls_081809
6. ISACA: "What Is Big Data and What Does It Have to Do with IT Audit?", ISACA Journal, 2013, p.23-25
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8. https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/9378405/
9. Almukaynizi M, Nunes E, Dharaiya K, Senguttuvan M, Shakarian J and Shakarian P. (2019).
10. https://wires.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/widm.1259
11. https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/82971343.pdf
12. Dykstra J. and Sherman A. (2011), "Understanding issues in cloud forensics: Two hypothetical case studies," Journal of Network Forensics, vol.b, no. 3
13. Fen X., X (2011) "Computer Law in UK", UCC Data Retriever, Digital Library Workshop, Ireland
14. (2014), "Information technology-- Security techniques -- Code of practice for protection of personally identifiable information (PII) in public clouds acting as PII processors, ISO 27018 standard". http://www.iso27001security.com/html/27018.html
15. (2011), "Cloud Computing: pros and cons for computer forensic investigations", International Journal of Multimedia and Image Processing (IJMIP), vol. 1, no. 1, pp. 26–34, March 2011.
16. https://apps.dtic.mil/sti/pdfs/ADA590911.pdf
17. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S2210537921001335

End-Notes:

1. Naveen, & Naveen, What is Digital Forensics: Types, Process, Challenges, Intellipaat, https://intellipaat.com/blog/digital-forensics/ , 2023, October 12
2. (2011), "Cloud Computing: pros and cons for computer forensic investigations", International Journal Multimedia and Image Processing (IJMIP), vol. 1, no. 1, pp. 26–34, March 2011.
3. Oteng Tabona, Thabiso M Maupong, Kopo M Ramokapne, On Big Data Forensic and Foresic Cloud Environment, IEEE Explorer, 2022.
4. Shams Zawoad, Ragib Hasan, Digital Forensics in the cloud, CrossTalk, September 2022
5. Id
6. Id
7. Id
8. Id
9. Id
10. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)
11. Electronic Communications Privacy Act (ECPA)
12. Information Technology Act, 2000, § 43A, No. 21, Acts of Parliament, 2000 (India).
13. Information Technology Act, 2000, § 69, No. 21, Acts of Parliament, 2000 (India).
14. Information Technology Act, 2000, § 70, No. 21, Acts of Parliament, 2000 (India).
15. Information Technology Act, 2000, § 79A, No. 21, Acts of Parliament, 2000 (India).
16. Information Technology Act, 2000, § 80, No. 21, Acts of Parliament, 2000 (India).
17. Indian Evidence Act, 1872, § 65A, No. 1, Acts of Parliament, 1872 (India).
18. Indian Evidence Act, 1872, § 65B, No. 1, Acts of Parliament, 1872 (India).
19. Indian Evidence Act, 1872, § 65C, No. 1, Acts of Parliament, 1872 (India).
20. Indian Evidence Act, 1872, § 65D, No. 1, Acts of Parliament, 1872 (India).
21. Section 3.2, Cloud Computing Policy, 2015.
22. Section 3.3, Cloud Computing Policy, 2015.
23. Section 5.2, Cloud Computing Policy, 2015.
24. Section 6.1, Cloud Computing Policy, 2015.
25. Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines) Rules, Rule 3(4) 2011, Acts of Parliament, 2011, India.
26. Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines) Rules, Rule 5(1), 2011, Acts of Parliament, 2011, India.
27. Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines) Rules, Rule 5(5), 2011, Acts of Parliament, 2011, India.
28. Indian Penal Code
29. Website of Reserve Bank of India| National Portal of India. (n.d.), https://www.india.gov.in/official-website-reserve-bank-india
30. Barreno, M. et al.: "Open Problems in the Security of Learning". In: D. Balfanz and J. Staddon, eds., AISec, ACM, 2008, p.19-26
31. Shams Zawoad, Ragib Hasan, Digital Forensics in the cloud, CrossTalk, September 2022