Current state of validation and testing of digital forensic tools in the United States

Abstract

The Federal courts' decision in Dauber v. Merrell Dow Pharmaceutical, Inc. (1993) requires forensic testing protocols and tools to be validated and tested for reliability before they can be used to support expert witness testimony. Digital forensic labs and individual examiners in the United States should be performing their own validation and verification tests on their digital forensic tools. The Scientific Working Group of Digital Evidence (SWDGE) recommends that examiners perform validation testing whenever there are new, revised, or reconfigured tools, techniques, or procedures. This study surveyed digital forensics examiners in the U.S. to provide a description of the current state of validation and testing of digital forensic tools, current protocols used for validation, and barriers to performing these tests. The findings included, 95% validate and test their Digital Forensic tools. 80.3% document the validation and testing process and their results. 53.6% validate and test each function if the forensic tool performs several different functions. Examiners should test their digital forensic tools to make sure they are working properly and receiving accurate results. The findings and testimony can be dismissed in court if the examiner is not following set standards.