Memory Forensics
Memory forensics is a cybersecurity technique that involves analyzing the volatile memory (RAM) of a computer system to investigate security incidents, malware, and other malicious activities. It focuses on extracting and examining data such as running processes, network connections, loaded modules, and encryption keys that reside only in memory and are lost when the system is powered off. This method provides deep insights into system state and attacker behavior that are not available through traditional disk-based forensics.
Developers should learn memory forensics when working in cybersecurity, incident response, or malware analysis roles to detect advanced threats like fileless malware, rootkits, and memory-resident attacks that evade disk-based detection. It is crucial for forensic investigations in environments where preserving volatile evidence is key, such as in cloud computing, virtual machines, or during live system analysis to uncover hidden processes and data exfiltration. This skill helps in understanding attack vectors and improving system security by analyzing runtime artifacts.