This book explores the growing relationship between digital technology, criminal investigations, and modern policing. As technology is increasingly used to commit crimes as well as to solve them, digital evidence now features in most investigations, making a collaborative approach between legal personnel essential. Officers, investigators, and criminal justice professionals now require a practical understanding of how cyber security and digital forensics support the pursuit of justice.

Written for students, frontline officers, investigators, and those new to digital investigations, this book explains the key concepts in clear, accessible language without assuming prior technical knowledge. It introduces the principles of confidentiality, integrity, and availability (CIA), examines the digital evidence commonly encountered in investigations, and explores the cyber-attacks that compromise systems and evidence. Following the understanding of devices and attacks, the various sections guide the reader through the digital forensic processes, technical processes, evidential integrity, governance frameworks, compliance requirements, and the professional standards used across England and Wales.

With this understanding achieved, there is a wide range of policing scenarios, case studies, and guidance to further embed knowledge and understanding of cyber and digital within law enforcement. The book demonstrates how digital evidence should be identified, preserved, analysed, documented, and presented in court; in addition, it shows the importance of building strong cyber culture, as without this, the other stages would be ineffective. The result is a practical bridge between cyber security, digital forensics, and everyday policing practice in an increasingly digital society.

This is essential reading for Professional Policing students taking courses on criminal investigation, crime scene management, digital policing, intelligence analysis, and cyber security.

Rachael Medhurst is Senior Lecturer and Course Leader of BSc and MSc Digital Forensics at the University of South Wales, PhD student in healthcare DFIR, and Co-Founder of Positive Cyber Solutions Ltd. A former Digital Forensic Investigator, she specialises in digital evidence, cyber security, incident response, and policing.

Mabrouka Abuhmida is Senior Lecturer and Research & Innovation Leader at the University of South Wales. Her research interests include artificial intelligence, natural language processing, cybersecurity, and AI in healthcare. She has published widely in these areas and leads interdisciplinary collaborations with industry, healthcare, and public sector partners.

Emma Derbi is Managing Director of Positive Cyber Solutions Ltd and Lecturer in governance, risk, and compliance. She specialises in cyber security governance, Cyber Essentials, ISO 27001, risk management, and compliance, supporting organisations with practical, assurance-focused security and governance improvement.