Investigating America Online Instant Messaging Application: Data Remnants on Windows 8.1 Client Machine
This provides incremental forensic knowledge for practitioners handling criminal or civil cases involving instant messaging apps on Windows 8.1.
The study analyzed America Online Instant Messenger on Windows 8.1 to identify forensic artifacts such as installation data, login information, contact lists, conversations, and transferred files, contributing to evidence collection in investigations.
Instant messaging applications (apps) are one potential source of evidence in a criminal investigation or a civil litigation. To ensure the most effective collection of evidence, it is vital for forensic practitioners to possess an up-to-date knowledge about artefacts of forensic interest from various instant messaging apps. Hence, in this chapter, we study America Online Instant Messenger (version 7.14.5.8) with the aims of contributing to an in-depth understanding of the types of terrestrial artefacts that are likely to remain after the use of instant messaging services and app on Windows 8.1 devices. Potential artefacts identified during the research include data relating to the installation or uninstallation, log-in and log-off information, contact lists, conversations, and transferred files.