CHFI Evidence Acquisition and Duplication Practice Question
This CHFI practice question tests your understanding of evidence acquisition and duplication. Compare every option against the stated constraints before choosing — the best answer satisfies all requirements, not just the most obvious one. After answering, compare your reasoning against the explanation and wrong-answer breakdown below. Once you have made your selection, read the full explanation to reinforce the concept and understand why each distractor is designed to mislead on exam day.
You are a forensic investigator responding to a suspected data breach at a financial institution. The incident response team has isolated a Windows 10 workstation used by a former employee. The system is still powered on, and the login screen is displayed. Your task is to acquire forensic evidence in a defensible manner. The following actions are available:
A. Immediately pull the power cord to perform a cold acquisition of the hard drive.
B. Capture volatile data (RAM, network connections, running processes) using a trusted tool on a USB drive, then shut down normally and remove the hard drive for imaging.
C. Boot the system from a forensic live CD and create a forensic image of the hard drive while the system is running.
D. Use the built-in Windows backup to create a system image to an external drive.
Which action is the most appropriate first step in this scenario?
Clue words in this question
Noticing these words before you look at the options changes how you read each choice.
Clue: "first"
Why it matters: Order matters here. You are being tested on which action comes before the others — not which action is generally useful.
Clue: "immediately / without restart"
Why it matters: Time or reboot constraint — the correct answer must take effect right away without requiring a reboot or reload.
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Capture volatile data using a trusted tool on a USB drive, then shut down normally and remove the hard drive for imaging
Option B is correct because the system is still powered on with the login screen displayed, meaning volatile data (RAM, network connections, running processes) is present and will be lost if the system is powered off. Capturing this data first using a trusted forensic tool (e.g., FTK Imager or DumpIt) from a write-blocked USB drive preserves critical evidence such as encryption keys, active network connections, and malware in memory. Only after volatile data is secured should the system be shut down normally and the hard drive removed for forensic imaging, ensuring a defensible chain of custody.
Key principle: Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
✗
Use the built-in Windows backup to create a system image to an external drive
Why it's wrong here
Windows backup is not forensically sound; it may modify timestamps and metadata.
✓
Capture volatile data using a trusted tool on a USB drive, then shut down normally and remove the hard drive for imaging
Why this is correct
This preserves volatile evidence first, then allows forensic imaging of the disk.
Clue confirmation
The clue words "first", "immediately / without restart" in the question point toward this answer.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
✗
Boot the system from a forensic live CD and create a forensic image of the hard drive while the system is running
Why it's wrong here
Booting from a live CD alters the system state and may overwrite evidence.
✗
Immediately pull the power cord to perform a cold acquisition of the hard drive
Why it's wrong here
Pulling the power cord loses volatile data and may cause filesystem damage.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
EC-Council often tests the misconception that pulling the power cord is the safest method to preserve disk evidence, but the trap here is that it destroys volatile data and can cause filesystem corruption, making it inappropriate when the system is still powered on and volatile data is present.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Volatile data acquisition follows the Order of Volatility (OOV) per RFC 3227, which prioritizes capturing CPU registers, routing tables, ARP cache, process tables, kernel statistics, and main memory before any non-volatile storage. Tools like WinPmem or Magnet RAM Capture can acquire RAM via a trusted USB without altering the host system's registry or prefetch files. In a real-world breach, the former employee may have left a remote access tool (RAT) running in memory, which would be lost if power is cut; capturing RAM can also recover decrypted data from encrypted volumes (e.g., BitLocker keys in memory).
KKey Concepts to Remember
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
Find the constraint that changes the correct option.
Eliminate answers that are true in general but not in this case.
TExam Day Tips
→Watch for words such as best, first, most likely and least administrative effort.
→Review why wrong options are wrong, not only why the correct option is correct.
Key takeaway
Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Real-world example
How this comes up in practice
A practitioner preparing for the CHFI exam encounters this exact type of scenario on the job. The correct answer here is not the most general option — it is the best answer for the specific constraint described. Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option. Real exam questions reward reading the full scenario before eliminating options, because the constraint defines which answer fits.
Related glossary terms
Concepts from this question explained
These glossary pages explain the core terms tested in this CHFI question in full detail.
Evidence Acquisition and Duplication — This question tests Evidence Acquisition and Duplication — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Capture volatile data using a trusted tool on a USB drive, then shut down normally and remove the hard drive for imaging — Option B is correct because the system is still powered on with the login screen displayed, meaning volatile data (RAM, network connections, running processes) is present and will be lost if the system is powered off. Capturing this data first using a trusted forensic tool (e.g., FTK Imager or DumpIt) from a write-blocked USB drive preserves critical evidence such as encryption keys, active network connections, and malware in memory. Only after volatile data is secured should the system be shut down normally and the hard drive removed for forensic imaging, ensuring a defensible chain of custody.
What should I do if I get this CHFI question wrong?
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
Are there clue words in this question I should notice?
Yes — watch for: "first", "immediately / without restart". Order matters here. You are being tested on which action comes before the others — not which action is generally useful.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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