Expert Witness Testimony

 

Many criminal and civil trials involve extensive scientific evidence. While prosecutors and police officers are typically able to introduce first-hand knowledge in court about events relevant to trial proceedings, scientific evidence is another matter altogether.

One major area of expertise in these matters concerns cyber security. A cyber security professional may be able to provide expert witness testimony on a number of complex matters, as well as help defense teams and prosecutors alike to understand the evidence in the case and how it may play a key role in a variety of criminal and civil trials.

The Role of an Expert in a Trial

 

Unlike other witnesses who can only testify as to what they actually saw, expert witnesses are able to provide their opinions as to what occurred in a specific instance. For example, a cybercrime expert in a criminal case alleging improper access to a computer may be able to state in an official capacity that a defendant accessed a computer using a trojan horse malware program.

That expert will typically examine the evidence in the case prior to getting to trial and author an opinion that comes to a specific conclusion. That expert must then testify in person as to their findings so that the other party’s attorney can cross-examine their conclusions.

Types of Cases that May Involve Expert Witnesses

 

Almost any kind of criminal or civil case may involve the testimony of an expert witness. Any time an attorney needs to present scientific evidence that backs a conclusion an expert must testify about that evidence under oath.

As applied to the world of cybersecurity, experts may be brought in to:

• Explain how a criminal defendant accessed a prohibited computer network
• Testify as to how an instance of corporate espionage compromised a company’s network
• Explain how a rival company’s new security design infringes upon a patent held by another company

What Makes a Witness an Expert?

 

The qualifications of an expert witness vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction. However, most courts will use Federal Rule of Evidence 702 as a baseline to qualify a witness as an expert. This rule states that a court may qualify a witness as an expert if all the following conditions apply:

• The expert has specialized scientific or technical knowledge that could help the court understand relevant evidence and material facts
• The expert has sufficient qualitative evidence to back up their testimony
• The testimony is based on “reliable principles and methods” that the expert “reliably applied” when constructing their assessment of the case at hand

A witness does not need to possess any specific training or education to qualify as an expert. However, an expert in a cyber security case may certainly carry more gravitas if they possess a masters or PhD degree in computer science or a related field, although in some cases experience may serve as a substitute for education.

Expert Witness Testimony is Vital to Many Cybersecurity Cases

Working with an expert witness may be key to protecting your legal rights in court. Experts are uniquely qualified to draw conclusions from scientific data and to testify about their opinion about what happened without firsthand knowledge of an event. This could include experts who know about data recovery, methods to defeat computer security, and even those who can testify about police procedures used to track alleged criminals.

A cybersecurity firm’s employees could serve as expert witnesses in a variety of matters. Get in touch today to learn more about how our team could help you.