DATA SECURITY AND DIGITAL FOOTPRINTS: ENSURING THE INTEGRITY OF ELECTRONIC EVIDENCE IN CRIMINAL PROCEEDINGS

The article discusses the current problem of ensuring the security and integrity of digital footprints used as electronic evidence in criminal proceedings in the context of digital transformation of society. Electronic evidence plays a key role in criminal proceedings, and therefore, protecting it from unauthorized interference is essential to ensuring justice from the moment it is generated to its presentation in court. The vulnerability of electronic data can be caused by various factors, including data theft, unauthorized access, viruses or hacker attacks. Ensuring the security of such data requires special knowledge and technology. Digital security experts must constantly improve their skills to prevent possible attacks. The importance of maintaining integrity lies in ensuring its reliability and authenticity, since any change in information can lead to erroneous conclusions and seriously affect the outcome of a criminal case. Modern technologies, cryptography and blockchain, play an important role in protecting electronic evidence. Cryptographic methods help ensure the confidentiality and integrity of data, and blockchain technology provides decentralized storage of data, which makes it more resistant to interference. Effective protection of digital footprints, their integrity and confidentiality is important for ensuring the fairness and reliability of criminal proceedings in the era of digitalization of society. The article examines the complexities and features of ensuring the integrity of electronic evidence, and proposes strategic directions aimed at protecting electronic evidence from distortion and falsification. The author believes that the formulated conclusions and proposals may be important for the further development of science, as well as law enforcement and legislative regulation.

electronic evidence, digital footprints, criminal proceedings, data security, digital transformation, protection of electronic evidence, admissibility of evidence, electronic stor- age media, legal status, technology, confidentiality, integrity

Pertsev M. S. Data security and digital footprints: ensuring the integrity of electronic evidence in criminal proceedings. Biznes. Obrazovanie. Pravo = Business. Education. Law. 2025;2(71):211—215. DOI: 10.25683/VOLBI.2025.71.1256.