Why Should IT Personnel Receive Digital Forensics Awareness Training?

With the rapid increase in digitalization, cybersecurity threats facing organizations can be effectively managed not only through technical measures but also through sound human behavior. In this context, ensuring that personnel working in corporate information technologies (IT) units possess digital forensics awareness is critical for preserving the integrity of digital evidence and properly conducting incident response processes.

Digital forensics isn't just about technical analysis; it's also a field that requires legal validity, procedural accuracy, and interdisciplinary collaboration. Therefore, IT staff must be knowledgeable not only about system setup but also about how to act in the event of an incident, which logs to store and how, and which actions to avoid.

2. What is Digital Forensics Awareness?

Digital forensics awareness is IT personnel's understanding of the fundamental principles involved in collecting, preserving, and analyzing digital evidence. This awareness includes:

• How it may affect the legal validity of digital evidence,
• How to conduct the chain of custody,
• Actions that should not be taken at the time of the incident,
• How long and by what method should logs be stored?
• The importance of acting in compliance with the CMK, KVKK and other relevant legislation.

3. Reasons for Education

3.1. Protecting the Integrity of Evidence
IT personnel are often the first point of contact when detecting cyber incidents. If data on disk is altered during the technical intervention, or if the system is shut down without capturing a RAM image, the integrity of the evidence can be compromised, and the data obtained can be deemed inadmissible in court.

For example, if IT personnel detect a data breach and delete suspicious files from the system, forensic experts are left unable to access evidence. This leaves the technical aspects of the incident in the dark, and the legal process is hampered.

3.2. Knowing Legal Responsibilities

According to Article 134 of the CMK, the collection of digital evidence must be done within certain legal boundaries. Failure of IT personnel to understand these boundaries could lead to unauthorized examination of personal data and administrative or criminal penalties for violations under the Personal Data Protection Law.

Example: An IT specialist reviews an employee's emails and takes screenshots at the direction of their manager. If this action is taken without explicit consent or a court order, it could result in an administrative fine under Article 18 of the Personal Data Protection Law.

3.3. Proper Participation in the Incident Response Process In forensic cases, IT personnel undertake technical tasks such as evidence collection, system isolation, and log extraction. However, if these processes are not carried out in accordance with established procedures, the legal value of the evidence obtained may be diminished or the technical analysis of the case may be misdirected.

Example: After a ransomware attack, a system administrator reboots the system without analyzing the situation. This process results in the loss of encryption keys and network connections in RAM. However, capturing a RAM image could have yielded important clues about the attack's source.

4. Contributions of Education

Field	Benefits
Legal Compliance	It is ensured that transactions are carried out in accordance with CMK and KVKK.
Technical Accuracy	The incident response process and evidence collection procedures are carried out consciously.
Reputation Protection	Media damage to the institution as a result of incorrect operations is prevented.
Business Continuity and Crisis Management	Technical contribution is provided to the post-event recovery process.
Enterprise Risk Reduction	In case of violations, audit and investigation risks are minimized.

These contributions not only strengthen the institution's defense mechanism against cyber attacks, but also strengthen its hand in legal processes.

5. Conclusion and Recommendations

“Evidence gains meaning not only with the expert, but also with the person who protects, knows and conveys it.”

IT personnel are not only managers of the digital infrastructure but also key players who play an active role in the organization's legal processes. Therefore, awareness training based on legal, ethical, and procedural knowledge, as well as technical knowledge, directly impacts an organization's preparedness for digital incidents. Suggestions:

• “Computer Forensics Awareness Training” should be given to every IT personnel at least once a year.
• The roles and responsibilities of IT personnel should be clearly defined in incident response plans.
• Scenario-based training should be organized on topics such as chain of evidence, log management, and disk imaging.