Digital Forensics Certification

Is there anything else available on them apart from their (poorly designed IMHO) web site?

Negative mark from me on using the most clichéd image in computer forensics - a magnifying glass over some binary!

That is very true. Their requirements are also very high. I guess it is good but it can also make things more difficult for others.

I think thier requirements for the initial group is high becuase they do not have the TESTING in place yet. The First group will actually be tasked with creating the test questions. So they are trying to bypass the test by having higher requirements/experience. There is the DFCP cert for the more expierience examiner and then the DFCA for the less active forensic professionals.

I think with both warren Kruse and Kevin Manson on the board this will be heading in the right direction and will gain credibility..for both law enforcement and the civilian practitioners..

That is very true. Their requirements are also very high. I guess it is good but it can also make things more difficult for others.

Just looking at the application, it is already biased toward those with formal academic education and prior certification and against real world experience.

You are allowed a maximum of 40 out of 100 points for experience with 10 points/year practical experience, 5 points/year managerial/other experience. So ten years of experience is no better than four.

You can get a maximum of 40 points for training (1 point for each 8 hours), so formal course work is equivalent to experience?

There are 40 maximum points for professional experience but the way that it is broken down, you get 10 points for ALL testimony in court as an expert witness 5 points for ALL testimony in court as fact witness, 5 points for ALL depositions as an expert, 5 points for ALL published articles, 10 points for ALL books published, 10 points for having taught a graduate course, etc.

I'm not sure that Harlan Carvey could get 100 points under this scheme wink , but many persons with recent academic training (which, it so happens, they offer), could do it easily.

I think thier requirements for the initial group is high becuase they do not have the TESTING in place yet.

I dont think the application requirements will change once the testing has been established. Just instead of taking the test for the first individuals it will be creating the test.

I agree. Certs are great but the proof is really in the pudding.

My concern is that the testing developed by the founders will end up being a carbon copy of every other certification. Asking arcane or obscure questions that while they might be nice to know, are not really something an examiner needs to have on the tip of their tongue.

The example given in how to create multiple choice questions shows the DD command line. What if you don't use DD and don't care to?

I think that a large part of certifications should be essay questions based on scenarios covering topics like

Gathering evidence at the scene.
Steps you take to do an acquisition of a laptop when you cannot remove the hard drive.
Describe the overall format of a computer forensics report.

Instead most of these certs just want rote memorization of stuff to pass the test.

I hope this one turns out to be genuinely different, but I doubt it.

Next thing you will see? DFCB Bootcamps only 2995.00.

My concern is that the testing developed by the founders will end up being a carbon copy of every other certification. Asking arcane or obscure questions that while they might be nice to know, are not really something an examiner needs to have on the tip of their tongue.

Agreed, 100%. Over the years I have developed a set of standard practices regarding the capture and analysis of digital evidence and a series of scripts to follow for each. These scripts include information as to why I am doing something and include information that I do not intend to memorize because, frankly, because if I don't rely on my memory, I am less likely to miss a step.

A measure of what one can memorize, I believe, is not germane to the issue of what one can do. Being able to recall something rather than having to look it up may make you more productive but it doesn't mean that you are doing the right things.

Even worse is when you need to figure out what the question is asking because it is poorly worded or, worse yet, vendor biased.

I much prefer practical exams and essays to multple choice and true or false questions. Unfortunately, the latter are often preferred for scoring purposes.

Besides, everybody knows that the answer to "On a Windows system, where would you look for evidence of USB device attachment?" is "In Harlan Carvey's book."

My concern is that the testing developed by the founders will end up being a carbon copy of every other certification. Asking arcane or obscure questions that while they might be nice to know, are not really something an examiner needs to have on the tip of their tongue.

Besides, everybody knows that the answer to "On a Windows system, where would you look for evidence of USB device attachment?" is "In Harlan Carvey's book."

LoL So true!