File ________ is the process of identifying a file by certain characteristics, such as a file header or footer, rather than by the file extension or metadata

Fill in the blank(s) with the appropriate word(s).

Answer: Carving. For example, a suspect could try to hide images from investigators by changing the file extension of a picture from .jpg to .dll. When conducting a search using Windows File Explorer, you will not find the file, and even trying to open the file will be unsuccessful because the association between the file and the appropriate application has been broken. Nevertheless in our example, the file is still a picture. The file header for the picture will not have changed.