Company XYZ has experienced a breach and has requested an internal investigation be conducted by the IT Department. Which of the following represents the correct order of the investigation process?

Placing Collection before Identification is incorrect because you cannot properly collect evidence without first identifying what evidence exists and where it resides.

This sequence follows the standard forensic investigation model defined in NIST SP 800-86. Identification must come first to recognize what evidence exists; Preservation must occur before Collection to prevent alteration or destruction; Collection then gathers the preserved evidence; Examination and Analysis interpret the findings; and Presentation delivers conclusions. Performing collection before preservation risks compromising evidence admissibility in any legal or disciplinary proceeding.

Placing Identification after Examination and Collection reverses the logical order - evidence must be identified before it can be preserved or examined.

Skipping directly from Identification to Examination without Preservation and Collection violates chain-of-custody requirements and risks evidence contamination or inadmissibility.