Which term describes the unwanted or uncontrolled growth of a project’s scope?

• A. Scope creep
• B. Jurisdiction
• C. Chain of custody
• D. Forensic imaging

Answer: (A)

Scope creep is the unwelcome expansion of a project's scope beyond what was initially agreed. It happens when additional requirements or changes are added without adjusting the schedule, budget, or resources, often due to stakeholder requests or weak change control. In a CHFI or digital forensics project, this can show up as more systems to image, extra data sources to analyze, or additional tasks beyond the original plan, all of which can cause delays and increased costs. The other terms refer to different concepts: jurisdiction is about legal authority; chain of custody is the documented handling of evidence; forensic imaging is creating an exact copy of digital data for analysis.