Aims and Scope

Aims

• Publish original research, reviews, case reports and technical notes across medical, biological, chemical, physical, engineering, digital and behavioural forensic science.
• Give India's fast-growing forensic community (medical colleges, forensic science universities, central and state laboratories, police and judiciary) a home that is international in standard and reach.
• Strengthen the scientific basis of evidence: validation, error rates, interpretation and admissibility.
• Speed the transfer of new technology (AI, sequencing, portable instruments, imaging) into casework.

Audience. Forensic scientists and laboratory managers, forensic medicine faculty and residents, pathologists, odontologists and anthropologists, DNA analysts, chemists and toxicologists, crime-scene officers, digital forensic examiners, engineers and fire investigators, forensic psychologists and criminologists, forensic nurses, lawyers, judges and policy makers.

Distinct from existing STM titles. International Journal of Toxins and Toxics keeps environmental, clinical, occupational and food toxicology; International Journal of Information Security Engineering and International Journal of Wireless Security and Networks keep defensive security; International Journal of Behavioral Sciences keeps general behavioural research. IJCFST takes their forensic and casework applications.

Focus and Scope

The journal runs eight sections, each with its own section editor.

Section A. Forensic Medicine, Pathology and Death Investigation

Forensic pathology: medico-legal autopsy, cause and manner of death, post-mortem imaging (PMCT, virtopsy), time-since-death estimation, thanatochemistry, injury interpretation and biomechanics, asphyxial, thermal, electrical and road-traffic deaths, sudden natural death, forensic histopathology, mass-fatality management.

Clinical forensic medicine and jurisprudence: sexual assault examination, torture and custodial injury, child and elder abuse, age estimation of the living, consent, medical negligence, medico-legal reporting, expert testimony.

Forensic nursing and victim care: sexual-assault nurse examination, clinical evidence collection, screening for domestic violence, death-investigation and custodial nursing, forensic mental-health nursing, legal nurse consulting.

Section B. Forensic Biology, Genetics and Human Identification

Forensic DNA: STR, SNP, Y-chromosome and mitochondrial profiling, massively parallel sequencing, mixture interpretation and probabilistic genotyping, forensic genetic genealogy, DNA phenotyping and ancestry inference, rapid DNA, low-template and degraded samples, DNA databases, ethics and privacy, Indian and South Asian population data.

Forensic serology and molecular biology: body-fluid identification, RNA and epigenetic markers, age estimation from DNA methylation, microbiome forensics.

Forensic anthropology, odontology and entomology: age, sex, stature and ancestry estimation, skeletal trauma, forensic archaeology and taphonomy, craniofacial reconstruction and superimposition, dental age estimation, bite marks, dental identification, disaster victim identification, insect succession and post-mortem interval.

Wildlife and environmental biology forensics: species identification, wildlife trade and timber DNA, forensic botany, diatoms and palynology.

Section C. Forensic Chemistry and Toxicology

Drugs and toxicology: seized-drug analysis and profiling, novel psychoactive substances, post-mortem and drug-facilitated-crime toxicology, alternative matrices (hair, oral fluid, vitreous), alcohol and impaired driving, poisoning casework, entomotoxicology.

Explosives, fire and residues: explosives and post-blast analysis, gunshot residue, fire-debris and ignitable-liquid analysis.

Trace and materials evidence: paint, glass, fibres, soil, polymers, tapes, ink and paper, cosmetics, environmental forensics and pollution-source attribution.

Analytical methods: GC-MS, LC-MS/MS, HRMS, Raman, FTIR, XRF, SEM-EDX, chemometrics, sensors, portable and field-deployable instruments, sample preparation, method validation and measurement uncertainty.

Section D. Criminalistics and Crime-Scene Science

Crime-scene investigation: scene management, documentation, 3D scanning, photogrammetry, drones, forensic photography and imaging, evidence recovery, packaging and chain of custody.

Pattern and impression evidence: fingerprints and latent-print development, AFIS, bloodstain pattern analysis, footwear and tyre impressions, tool marks.

Firearms and ballistics: firearm identification, internal, external and terminal ballistics, shooting reconstruction.

Questioned documents: handwriting and signature examination, document security, counterfeit currency, printer and copier identification, forensic linguistics.

Section E. Forensic Engineering and Failure Investigation

Structural collapse and construction failure, geotechnical and dam failure.

Fire and explosion origin-and-cause, electrical fire and equipment failure.

Vehicle and road accident reconstruction, event-data recorders, aviation and rail incidents.

Forensic metallurgy, fractography, materials and product failure, product liability.

Industrial and occupational accident investigation, engineering expert evidence.

Section F. Digital, Multimedia and Computational Forensics

Digital evidence: computer, mobile, cloud, IoT, vehicle and drone forensics, memory and network forensics, file-system and database forensics, encryption and anti-forensics, tool validation, forensic readiness.

Cybercrime investigation: malware analysis and incident response, cryptocurrency and blockchain tracing, dark-web and OSINT investigation, online financial fraud, cyber-enabled crimes against women and children.

Multimedia and biometrics: image, video and audio authentication, deepfake and synthetic-media detection, source-camera identification, speaker recognition, face, fingerprint and iris matching, CCTV analytics.

AI and computational forensics: machine learning for evidence triage and classification, NLP for e-discovery, statistical interpretation software, pattern recognition for impression and trace evidence, forensic datasets and benchmarks, explainability and validation of algorithmic evidence.

Section G. Forensic Psychology, Criminology and Behavioural Science

Forensic psychology and psychiatry: offender profiling and crime linkage, eyewitness memory, investigative interviewing, deception detection (polygraph, EEG-based, statement analysis), competency and criminal responsibility, risk assessment, psychological autopsy, forensic mental health.

Criminology and victimology: crime patterns and prevention, violence and organised crime, behavioural aspects of cyber and financial crime, gender-based violence, juvenile justice, victim trauma, restorative justice, correctional rehabilitation and recidivism.

Financial forensics: forensic accounting, fraud examination, anti-money-laundering analytics.

Section H. Forensic Law, Quality, Education and Policy

Evidence and law: admissibility and weight of scientific evidence, expert testimony, forensic provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita and Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, wrongful convictions, privacy and human rights, comparative criminal justice.

Quality and interpretation: ISO/IEC 17025 accreditation, proficiency testing, error rates, cognitive bias, likelihood ratios and evaluative reporting, standards and guidelines.

Education and profession: curriculum and training, competency and certification, forensic workforce and capacity, laboratory management, forensic ethics.

Policy and emerging fields: forensic policy and funding, disaster and humanitarian forensics, maritime and border forensics, forensic science and public health.

Article Types

IJCFST accepts eight article types; the last two are distinctive to the convergent model.

Journal Information