Prosecuting Cybercrime: Foundations, Digital Evidence, and Related Offences

Vocabulary flashcards covering core legal concepts, digital evidence standards, trial preparation procedures, and the Kenyan statutory framework for prosecuting cybercrime.

Prosecution

The formal process of presenting a criminal case before a court to establish that an accused person committed an offence.

Actus Reus

The prohibited conduct, act, or omission criminalised by law that constitutes the physical element of an offence.

Mens Rea

The mental element required by an offence, such as intention, knowledge, dishonesty, or recklessness.

Attribution

The evidential process of linking the accused individual—rather than merely a device, account, or IP address—to the prohibited conduct.

Digital Evidence

Information stored or transmitted in digital form—such as emails, chat records, system logs, transaction histories, CCTV, and device data—used to prove or disprove a material issue in a case.

Chain of Custody

A documented, chronological record showing who collected, handled, transferred, examined, stored, and produced each item of evidence to establish its integrity.

Forensic Imaging

The practice of creating an exact, verified working duplicate of digital media while preserving and protecting the original evidence from alteration.

Cryptographic Hash

A mathematical algorithm output used to verify whether a digital file, forensic image, or piece of electronic evidence has remained unchanged.

Volatile Evidence

Digital data that is susceptible to being overwritten, altered, deleted, or retained for only a brief period by service providers or systems.

Preservation Request

A formal, prompt communication sent to a service provider to prevent the deletion or loss of data while formal legal disclosure processes are pursued.

Business Email Compromise

A cyber-enabled financial crime where an attacker impersonates a supplier, manager, or trusted party to intercept or redirect invoice payments to an unauthorised account.

Victim-Centred Approach

An investigative and prosecutorial strategy prioritising victim safety, privacy, informed support, protection from intimidation or re-traumatisation, and prevention of unnecessary exposure of identity.

Mutual Legal Assistance

A formal international cooperation mechanism governed by domestic law and treaties, used to obtain cross-border evidence, service disclosures, and legal assistance from foreign authorities.

Computer Misuse and Cybercrimes Act, 2018

The primary Kenyan legislation that defines and addresses specified computer misuse and cybercrime offences.

Evidence Act (Cap. 80)

Kenyan legislation governing the rules, procedures, certification, and admissibility of evidence, including electronic records, in court.

Data Protection Act, 2019

Kenyan statute regulating the lawful collection and processing of personal data, setting standards for privacy and data safeguards during investigations.

Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP)

The central constitutional body responsible for directing and conducting public criminal prosecutions in Kenya.

Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI)

The investigative department under Kenya's National Police Service with operational mandates to investigate criminal conduct, including cybercrime.