BMO Forensic Science & Analysis 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: What is the primary purpose of Locard's Exchange Principle in forensic science?
- Every contact leaves a trace (Correct answer)
- Evidence must be photographed before collection
- Chain of custody must be maintained
- All evidence requires DNA analysis
Correct answer: Every contact leaves a trace
Locard's Exchange Principle states that whenever two objects come into contact, they exchange trace material, forming the foundation of trace evidence analysis.
Question 2: In forensic accounting investigations, which technique is used to detect falsified financial records by analyzing the frequency distribution of leading digits?
- Regression analysis
- Benford's Law (Correct answer)
- Monte Carlo simulation
- Horizontal analysis
Correct answer: Benford's Law
Benford's Law predicts that in naturally occurring datasets, the digit 1 appears as the leading digit most frequently, and deviations from this pattern may indicate fraud.
Question 3: What type of forensic evidence is considered most individualistic, meaning it can be traced to a single source?
- Class evidence
- Individual evidence (Correct answer)
- Circumstantial evidence
- Associative evidence
Correct answer: Individual evidence
Individual evidence, such as DNA profiles or fingerprints, has characteristics that can be attributed to a single, specific source with a high degree of certainty.
Question 4: During a corporate fraud investigation, an investigator discovers that a manager has been creating fictitious vendors. This scheme is best classified as which type of fraud?
- Skimming
- Billing scheme (Correct answer)
- Payroll fraud
- Expense reimbursement fraud
Correct answer: Billing scheme
A billing scheme involves creating fictitious vendors or inflating invoices to divert company funds to the fraudster, making it a common accounts payable fraud.
Question 5: What is the correct sequence for processing a crime scene?
- Collect, document, secure, analyze
- Secure, document, collect, analyze (Correct answer)
- Analyze, secure, document, collect
- Document, collect, analyze, secure
Correct answer: Secure, document, collect, analyze
Crime scene processing follows the sequence of securing the scene, documenting everything in place, collecting evidence, then sending it for laboratory analysis.
Question 6: Which forensic analysis method uses gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) as a gold standard?
- Fingerprint comparison
- Drug identification (Correct answer)
- Ballistic analysis
- Bite mark analysis
Correct answer: Drug identification
GC-MS is the gold standard for identifying and quantifying controlled substances, separating chemical compounds and identifying them by their mass spectra.
Question 7: In digital forensics, what is the significance of a hash value (e.g., MD5, SHA-256) for collected evidence?
- It encrypts the evidence file
- It verifies evidence integrity and detects tampering (Correct answer)
- It compresses the evidence for storage
- It identifies the file owner
Correct answer: It verifies evidence integrity and detects tampering
Hash values create a unique digital fingerprint of a file, allowing investigators to verify that evidence has not been altered or tampered with since collection.
BMO Forensic Science & Analysis 2
What is the primary purpose of Locard's Exchange Principle in forensic science?