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When I began my career in Law Enforcement I had no idea I would end up one day investigating computer crimes, let alone be a Certified Forensic Computer Examiner (CFCE), a designation issued by the International Association of Computer Investigative Specialists (IACIS). The process to achieve the CFCE status consisted of 2 weeks of a bootcamp style indoctrination in the computer forensics world, a world that was only being taught by Law Enforcement at the time and which was followed by a year of completing peer reviewed problem sets as well as a comprehensive final exam. The process to become a CFCE, which was difficult and rewarding, and it was entirely managed by the volunteers who taught and mentored me. 

Industry Events: Network, Learn, Grow

Here's a list of the best 2021 digital forensic conferences around the world designed to help promote training and skills needed to collect and analyze digital evidence from computers and mobile devices.  

Note: The COVID-19 Pandemic is causing some digital forensic conferences to be moved online to virtual events. Other events are getting postponed or cancelled. Please check with the individual conference organizer to verify dates and locations. 

The Best Digital Forensic Conferences of the Year - with COVID-19 Pandemic Updates

Below is a list of some of our favorite annual conferences which are in addition to our list of 2020 Law Enforcement Conferences in North America.  

Note: The COVID-19 Pandemic is causing some digital forensic conferences to be moved online to virtual events. Other events are getting postponed or cancelled. Please check with the individual conference organizer to verify dates and locations. 

In response to the global COVID-19 pandemic, the International Association of Chiefs of Police moved the annual IACP Technology Conference online for 2020. The virtual event taking place June 24 and 25 is designed for law enforcement leaders but it is also attended by front-line officers and police professionals responsible for technology within their agencies. 

Each year, ADF works to pull together a comprehensive list of Law Enforcement conferences and events from around the world to help make it easy for professionals and industry to search and find the best events to attend. 

Today’s investigators and prosecutors are very familiar with the extreme difficulty in child exploitation cases: getting through your forensic backlog to get to the data in time. Law enforcement officers routinely report that a lack of technology which, combined with stringent time limits, can severely restrict their ability to check devices in a timely manner. ADF understands that digital forensic examinations can be both costly and time-consuming, which hampers investigations into suspects that have downloaded or participated in Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM). 

The Child Abuse Image Database (CAID) is the United Kingdom’s national system used by law enforcement to help fight the growing problem of Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM). The system helps police detect, flag and analyse illegal digital media images. 

The Massachusetts Attorney General's Office (AGO) has announced the dates for the NCCC  2020 National Cyber Crime Conference (MASS.gov).

Conferences are an excellent opportunity for like-minded individuals in a shared career to network, expand your knowledge, find solutions to problems, or to present your ideas and knowledge. Furthermore, they're a great opportunity for others to get to know you and your work. You also have the chance to learn outside of your field and area of work. We've compiled a list of the best forensics and law enforcement conferences in the UK for 2020. 

ADF's digital forensic team will be participating in the First Forensic Forum (F3) annual conference and training workshop. The 19th annual event will take place November 12-14, 2019 in Birmingham, United Kingdom. 

Technology has become more powerful and portable, allowing a more significant amount of information to be created, stored, and accessed. This shift in the information technology landscape (mobile, cloud, IoT, etc.) has made the collection and analysis of digital evidence a critical factor in investigating and solving virtually all types of crimes. 

There are serious Internet related crimes, that need to be investigated quickly, child exploitation related offenses for instance. For example, in the United Kingdom, the National Crime Agency recently estimated that about 140,000 out of nearly 3 million registered dark web accounts registered on child abuse sites are UK-based.

With a record number of attendees, speakers and exhibitors, the 2019 National Cyber Crime Conference organized by Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey's office this past week was a huge success with law enforcement professionals from 38 states, Canada, the UK and Africa. 

The NCCC event was especially important to ADF since it's our first major conference of the year and it's where we officially launched our new Mobile Device Investigator™ for iOS and Android investigations.  Our launch featured a demo by our digital forensic specialist, Rich Frawley who joined ADF after 22 years in law enforcement. 

Due to an increase in crimes involving the use of computers and cell phones, there is a growing need for Digital Media Investigators, sometimes referred to as DMIs. They have an important role to play in police investigations and that role is becoming more critical with the proliferation of digital data. 

Digital media investigators do more than just sit in a lab looking at hard drives. They are often digital first responders and go out into the field with other law enforcement agents to investigate crimes first hand and offer advice on how to gather digital evidence at a crime scene. Collecting, analyzing and reporting on digital evidence to be used to prosecute and convict criminals is a vital role for DMIs in the United Kingdom and elsewhere.

23 Industry Events: Network, Learn, Grow

The knowledge and training you can gain at digital forensic conferences around the world can make the difference in crime solving.  In addition to networking, annual conferences are one of the best ways to learn from peers, stay on top of the latest strategies and tactics, get an advance look at industry trends, and they can be a great place to talk face-to-face with digital forensic vendors. In addition to keynotes and lectures, many annual conferences also offer hands-on lab sessions or pre-conference training classes. Below is a list of some of our favorite annual conferences which are in addition to our list of 2020 Law Enforcement Conferences in North America.  

Project VIC is a nonprofit organization founded by Rich Brown and former U.S. law enforcement officials who saw the need to normalize data between digital forensic tools, software vendors, and service providers in order to focus the community on building enhanced workflows to more rapidly identify victims of child exploitation (CSAM, CEM) and human trafficking.

Join ADF for the First Forensic Forum (F3) Annual Training Workshop being held in the United Kingdom.  F3 provides an open forum for any organizations focused on digital forensics.  

The emphasis of F3 training days and seminars is focused on the technical aspects of digital forensics. Computer technology in all its forms is a fast-moving area, and in order to function effectively, forensic computing analysts are constantly faced with the necessity of updating and expanding their knowledge. The First Forensic Forum aims to provide them with the opportunity to do so by drawing upon the expertise of member organisations. The majority of F3 members are involved in the analysis of computer-based evidence of various types, and some are also authors and manufacturers of forensic computing tools and solutions.

ADF Solutions, a leading provider of digital forensic and media exploitation software, has released Triage-G2, the latest evolution of ADF's award-winning media exploitation tool. Triage-G2 is deployed by special forces, military and intelligence agencies worldwide and has a proven track record of supporting site exploitation missions, including Tactical Media Exploitation, DOMEX, MEDEX, and biometric identity operations.

Designed for nontechnical operators, Triage-G2 employs a simple two-step process to rapidly scan, extract, and analyze critical intelligence from computers and digital devices. The tool can be deployed on existing computing devices and on a small portable USB key. The collected data can then be easily distributed via portable reports or ingested into data repositories, which include Processing, Exploitation and Dissemination Systems (PED).

ADF Solutions, a leading provider of digital forensic and media exploitation tools, has released Triage-Investigator, the latest evolution of ADF's award-winning digital forensic triage tool designed for field deployment. Triage-Investigator has a proven track record of providing investigators with easy, quick access to court-defendable evidence to process criminal cases.