Which Linux command is used to create the raw data format?

• A. ls
• B. cp
• C. dd
• D. cat

Answer: (C)

dd is designed to perform low-level copying of data streams, making it ideal for creating exact, raw disk images. In forensic contexts, “raw data format” means a bit-for-bit copy of the source, including all sectors and unallocated space, without interpreting filesystem structures or metadata. dd reads raw input and writes it to a destination exactly as it appears, so commands like if=/dev/sdX of=image.img bs=1M produce a faithful binary image of the source. The other utilities don’t specialize in this kind of unformatted data handling: ls just lists directory contents, cp copies files within a filesystem and may alter metadata or omit unallocated space, and cat simply outputs data or concatenates streams but doesn’t guarantee a faithful, sector-for-sector copy for disk imaging.