What type of evidence do courts consider evidence data in a computer to be?
Group of answer choices
Invalid
Physical
Virtual
Logical
Logical
The type of evidence that courts consider evidence data in a computer to be is virtual evidence.
The type of evidence that courts consider data in a computer to be is usually classified as "Virtual" or "Digital" evidence. This is because the data stored in a computer is intangible and exists in the digital realm rather than physically. It includes all types of electronic information such as documents, emails, images, videos, audio recordings, and any other files stored on a computer or other digital storage devices.
To determine the type of evidence data in a computer, courts typically analyze the digital information using forensic techniques. These techniques involve retrieving and examining the data from the computer or its storage devices, considering the metadata associated with the files (such as creation dates and user information), ensuring the integrity of the evidence with proper chain of custody procedures, and presenting the digital evidence in a format that can be understood and analyzed by the court.
Physical evidence, on the other hand, refers to tangible objects or materials that can be physically present in a courtroom, such as weapons, drugs, or other physical objects. While physical evidence may play a part in computer-related cases, the main focus is usually on the digital evidence stored within the computer system.