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Please indicate : New ____X___ Modify _______ Delete _______
Department/Unit : _ Electrical and Computer Engineering_____ Course Subject/Number : CFRS 760 _____
Submitted by : ____ Jeremy Allnutt _______ Ext : _3969__________ Email : _ jallnutt@gmu.edu_________
Course Title : ____ Legal and Ethical Issues in IT ____________________________________________________
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: _Spring 2009___ Final Term
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:____________
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:_______CFRS 500________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________
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1. COURSE NUMBER AND TITLE:
CFRS 760 Legal and Ethical Issues in IT (3:3:0)
Course Prerequisites:
CFRS 500
Catalog Description:
Presents legal and ethics topics in the context of computer forensics. It will include legal principles, types of crimes, witness testimony, and forensics report writing.
2. COURSE JUSTIFICATION:
Course Objectives:
At the conclusion of this course, the student will have learned and reflected upon the legal principles and ethical standards underpinning the field of computer forensics. The student will understand such concepts as: probable cause, the “silver platter doctrine,” chain of custody, scienter
, and Locard’s exchange principle. Students will have examined the relationship of computer to other disciplines. The student will also appreciate the role of professional organizations, certifications and codes of ethics as they apply to professional practice.
Course Necessity:
As with any program in the fields of IT security or justice, a course in law and ethics is necessary to ensure professional standards of conduct. The integration of witness testimony and report writing will give students context in which to apply legal principles and ethics.
Course Relationship to Existing Programs:
Many undergraduate and graduate programs include courses on, or elements of, ethics. In this computer forensics course, the emphasis is on those parts of computer forensics that will require a full understanding of ethics issues.
Course Relationship to Existing Courses:
This is a new course in the MS in Computer Forensics program. While it may be taken at any point in the program to allow scheduling flexibility, students will be advised to take it during their first year. While report writing is also covered in CFRS 660, note that reporting practices differ in different types of investigations and that additional practice writing reports will be beneficial.
3. APPROVAL HISTORY:
ECE Department Date:
IT&E Graduate Committee Date:
IT&E Dean Date:

4. SCHEDULING AND PROPOSED INSTRUCTORS:
Semester of Initial Offering: Fall 2009
Proposed Instructors: Proposed Instructors: Dr. Anne Marchant, Dr. Jeremy Allnutt, Mr. Robert Osgood,
Dr. Aleksander Lazarevich, Dr. Thomas Shackelford, and other suitably qualified
faculty.
5. TENTATIVE SYLLABUS: See below.
(a) Syllabus
Week 1
Course overview : Introduction to the course. Overview of types of legal systems. Review of federal and state laws as they relate to computer crime (CFAA, ECPA, USAPA, NET Act, DMCA, FISA,
The Omnibus Crime and Control Act of 1968, etc.), search and seizure, trap and trace, intellectual property, and computer forensics.
Week 2
Types of crimes and criminals. The rise of international crime and the role of grid computing.
Week 3
Overview of local, state, federal, and international law enforcement agencies and court systems.
Student seminar presentations.
Week 4
Jurisdiction and evidence. Determination of jurisdiction, types of evidence, rules of evidence, chain of custody, evidence integrity. Student seminar presentations.
Week 5
Formal discussion of ethics I. Ethical standards, codes of ethics, ethical decision making. Student seminar presentations.
Week 6
Formal examinations of landmark cases. Student seminar presentations.
Week 7
Course review; Mid-term exam
Week 8
Formal discussion of ethics II: Ethics training, whistle blowing, balancing privacy and the needs of law enforcement in a free society, cultural and ethical considerations in the context of international investigations. Student seminar presentations.
Week 9
Guest speaker (lawyer, prosecutor, or law enforcement). Student seminar presentations.

Week 10
Report writing. Establishing facts, style and use of language. Verification and use of accredited tools. Student seminar presentations.
Week 11
Legal instruments and courtroom procedures.
Subpoenas, warrants, and affidavits.
Discovery, presentation of evidence, cross examination. Student seminar presentations.
Week 12
Expert witness testimony. Student seminar presentations.
Week 13
Mock courtroom trial. Student seminar presentations.
Week 14
The computer forensics professional. Professional organizations, certifications and computer
Forensics as it relates to other disciplines. Professional preparation and lifelong learning . Review and Synthesis.
Week 15
Final exam
(b) Required Reading and Reference Material
Orin S. Kerr (2006). Kerr's Computer Crime Law: (American Casebook Series) (American
Casebook Series). West Group.
Philip J. Candilis, Robert Weinstock, Richard Martinez, Andrew Szanton (Editor). (2007) Forensic
Ethics and the Expert Witness. Springer.
Suggested supplementary material includes:
Codes of ethics:
IACIS.com
ISFCE
Cybersecurity Institute
(c) Student Evaluation Criteria
Mid-term: 25%
Presentations:
Mock forensic report:
Final:
20%
20%
35%

Examples of Seminar Presentation Topics:
FRED (Federal Rules of Evidence)
Kyollo v. US
Katz v. US
California v. Greenwood
Attend and report on a current trial
Pretexting
USAPA (Patriot Act)
Hewlett-Packard employee surveillance case
DOJ HTIU (High Tech Investigative Crime Unit)
DOJ CCIP (Computer Crime and Intellectual Property)
FBI RCFLs (Regional Computer Forensics Laboratory)
IC3 (Internet Crime Complaint Center)
Interpol and Europol
Counter forensics: U.S. v. Robert Johnson, 2005, State of Missouri v. Zacheriah Tripp, Kucala
Enterprises v Auto Wax Co
Vigilantism: Titan Rain case
Data profiling and “anonymizer” investigative tools (Jeffrey Jonas)
Panopticon and expectations of privacy in a free society
Hacker culture, networks, publications, and DEFCON
Online child exploitation (child pornography, stalking)
Internet Fraud, botnets and spam
NIST standards