ForensicSpot10 modules
Multimedia Authentication and Deepfake Forensics
Authenticating media and detecting fakery: image, video and audio tamper detection, deepfakes and synthetic media, source attribution, and steganography.
- 60hours
- 30topics
- 10modules
Module 16 hrs3 topics
Media Authentication and Integrity
Why authenticity matters and the questions an examiner must answer.
Start module- Media Authentication FundamentalsIntroduces the core question of media authentication: has content been altered, and does it match its claimed source and context.13 min
- Chain of Custody for Digital MediaCovers acquisition, write-blocking, hashing for integrity, and documentation standards for image, video, and audio exhibits before technical examination.13 min
- Authentication Versus Enhancement: Defining the Examiner's ScopeClarifies the boundary between authentication, which asks if a file is genuine, and enhancement, which improves content assumed genuine.13 min
Module 26 hrs3 topics
Image Authenticity and Tamper Detection
Detecting edited, spliced and manipulated images.
Start module- Image File Format and Integrity ChecksExplains how examiners inspect JPEG, PNG, and TIFF headers, chunk structures, and embedded data for signs of re-saving or format conversion.13 min
- Copy-Move and Splicing Detection in ImagesDescribes block-matching algorithms, keypoint detectors, and deep-learning classifiers used to locate copy-move forgery and image splicing.13 min
- Noise Inconsistency and Lighting Analysis for Image ForgeryCovers measuring noise variance across image regions and modelling illuminant direction to expose content composited under different conditions.13 min
Module 36 hrs3 topics
Video Authentication
Detecting edited, re-encoded and manipulated video.
Start module- Detecting Frame Deletion and Insertion in VideoExplains parsing container timestamps, GOP boundaries, and inter-frame residuals to detect frame deletion or insertion in video.13 min
- Double Compression Analysis in VideoCovers using DCT coefficient histograms and macroblock statistics to detect double compression and estimate the first encoding's parameters.13 min
- Matching Video to a Source CameraDescribes correlating codec settings, bitrate profile, and colour pipeline to match video to a suspect camera and check metadata consistency.13 min
Module 46 hrs3 topics
Audio Authentication
Detecting edited and synthesised audio recordings.
Start module- Detecting Discontinuities in Audio RecordingsCovers spectrographic methods and automated detectors that locate energy transients, phase breaks, and noise-floor shifts in edited audio.13 min
- Electric Network Frequency Analysis for Audio DatingExplains how mains-hum ENF extraction and reference database matching verify or refute a recording's claimed time and date.13 min
- Voice Conversion and Cloning DetectionSurveys detecting voice conversion and neural cloning through spectral smoothness, prosody scores, and the ASVspoof benchmark corpora.13 min
Module 56 hrs3 topics
Deepfakes and Synthetic Media
How synthetic media is made and how it is detected.
Start module- How Deepfakes Are Generated: GANs, Diffusion and Face Swap PipelinesExplains how GANs, diffusion models, and face-swap pipelines like FaceSwap and DeepFaceLab produce synthetic faces and their telltale artifacts.13 min
- Deepfake Detection Methods: From CNNs to Foundation ModelsReviews detection architectures from handcrafted artifact analysis to vision-language models, and the FaceForensics++ evaluation protocol.13 min
- Provenance Watermarking and Invisible Signing of Synthetic MediaCovers imperceptible watermarks and model fingerprints such as SynthID, and the tradeoffs between robustness and capacity in provenance signing.13 min
Module 66 hrs3 topics
Source Device Identification
PRNU, sensor noise, microphone and codec fingerprints.
Start module- Photo Response Non-Uniformity and Sensor FingerprintingExplains how PRNU sensor noise is estimated from flat-field images and matched via cross-correlation to attribute footage to a camera body.13 min
- Lens Distortion, CFA Pattern and Demosaicing FingerprintsExplains how CFA interpolation artifacts and lens distortion profiles distinguish camera models and expose footage from a different optical system.13 min
- Microphone and Codec Identification in Audio ForensicsDescribes spectral fingerprinting and bitstream analysis linking a recording to a device class or detecting recompression against claimed conditions.13 min
Module 76 hrs3 topics
Steganography and Hidden Data
Concealing and detecting hidden data in media files.
Start module- Steganography Principles and Common Carrier FormatsCovers least-significant-bit substitution, spread-spectrum embedding, and palette methods for hiding data in JPEG, PNG, WAV, and MP4 carriers.13 min
- Steganalysis: Statistical and Machine Learning Detection MethodsReviews chi-square attacks, calibration detectors, and convolutional steganalysis networks, and their effectiveness against adaptive embedding.13 min
- Network Steganography and Covert ChannelsExplains hiding data in unused header fields, timing channels, and protocol redundancies, and detecting it through traffic and protocol anomaly analysis.13 min
Module 86 hrs3 topics
Metadata and Provenance
EXIF, container metadata, and provenance standards such as C2PA.
Start module- EXIF and Container Metadata ForensicsExplains extracting and cross-validating EXIF, XMP, IPTC, and container metadata such as GPS and timestamps, and how editing tools alter these fields.13 min
- C2PA and Content Credentials: Cryptographic Provenance StandardsExplains the C2PA trust model, which cryptographically binds authorship and edit history to a manifest, and its limits under re-sharing or re-encoding.13 min
- Blockchain and Distributed Ledger Approaches to Media ProvenanceEvaluates blockchain-based provenance schemes, distinguishing what a ledger entry actually proves from broader claims about media origin.13 min
Module 96 hrs3 topics
Compression and Error-Level Analysis
How compression artifacts reveal manipulation.
Start module- JPEG Compression Artifacts and Error Level AnalysisExplains error level analysis, which re-compresses an image to reveal quality-level differences, and the misreadings it invites without care.13 min
- DCT Block Boundaries and Quantisation Grid AnalysisExplains how block-boundary artifact phase and strength from JPEG and video DCT compression reveal splicing or misaligned double compression.13 min
- Compression History Estimation in Video StreamsCovers macroblock statistics and machine-learning regressors that estimate how many encoding generations H.264 or H.265 footage has undergone.13 min
Module 106 hrs3 topics
Presenting Media Authenticity in Court
Reporting and testifying on authenticity findings.
Start module- Writing a Media Authenticity Examination ReportCovers report structure, hedging language for probabilistic findings, and communicating deepfake detector and ELA limitations to non-specialists.13 min
- Expert Witness Testimony on Media EvidenceExamines how examiners qualify under Daubert, Frye, and Commonwealth standards, and respond to cross-examination on tool validation.13 min
- Standards and Validation Frameworks in Media ForensicsSurveys validation guidance from SWGDE, NIST, and ISO, and the challenge of validating fast-evolving AI-based detection tools.13 min