A round-up of this week’s digital forensics news and views:
Digital Forensics—When Licensing Would Make Expertise Worse
Digital forensics stands apart from other forensic fields by operating without mandatory licensing. Instead, it relies on consensus-driven standards like those from SWGDE to ensure quality. This agile model suits the field’s rapid technological evolution, allowing practitioners to adapt quickly. Though lacking formal gatekeeping, the approach fosters robust, timely methodologies grounded in real-world expertise.
Apples to Apples: Why macOS Forensics Can Be Easier Than Windows
MacOS forensics often proves simpler than Windows, thanks to its consistent system architecture, unified logs, and artifact-rich file system. Apple’s controlled ecosystem limits variability and noise, streamlining investigations. While memory forensics remains a challenge due to strict security features, disk-based analysis is faster and clearer — making macOS a surprisingly efficient platform for incident responders.
Read More (Mat Cyb3rF0x Fuchs)
Technical Notes on the Use of Timing Advance Records
SWGDE’s new guidance on Timing Advance (TA) records offers practitioners detailed recommendations for acquiring and analyzing this mobile network data type. While TA data can assist with estimating device proximity to a cell site, it comes with limitations like multipath signal distortion and carrier-specific algorithms. The document emphasizes cautious interpretation, legal compliance, and the need for proper training.
Nigerian Software Engineering Graduate Creates Forensics App Transforming United Kingdom Police Investigations
Ayodele Oduola, a Nigerian software engineering graduate, earns acclaim for developing a mobile app now used by over 800 Staffordshire Police officers to streamline digital evidence handling. The cross-platform tool improves forensic efficiency at crime scenes and has sparked interest in wider adoption. Praised for its real-world impact, the innovation showcases emerging global tech talent.
Read More (The Nigeria Education News)
After Europol’s Record CSAM Takedown: Who Protects The Investigators?
Europol’s takedown of a vast CSAM network highlights not just technological success, but the immense psychological toll on digital forensic investigators. Constant exposure to traumatic content, worsened by AI-generated material, places these professionals at risk of burnout and PTSD. Experts call for trauma-informed leadership, better mental health support, and cultural change to safeguard the well-being of those fighting online child abuse.
Kulpa app helps to empower victims of stalking and harassment
During National Stalking Awareness Week, Hertfordshire Constabulary promotes the Kulpa app, which securely stores digital evidence of stalking, harassment, and abuse. Already aiding prosecutions, Kulpa allows victims to upload files like messages, videos, and CCTV footage, which police can access with consent. Officers report improved case outcomes, and support groups nationwide now endorse the app’s use.
Read More (Hertfordshire Constabulary)
Meta faces Ghana lawsuits over impact of extreme content on moderators
Meta faces fresh legal action after content moderators in Ghana report severe psychological harm from reviewing graphic material, including murder and child abuse. Workers allege poor pay, surveillance, and inadequate mental health support at contractor Majorel. The case, led by UK nonprofit Foxglove, follows similar PTSD claims in Kenya and raises urgent questions about Big Tech’s outsourcing practices in Africa.
The Impact of Microsoft’s ReFS on DFIR
Microsoft’s Resilient File System (ReFS) introduces major forensic shifts, replacing NTFS’s familiar artifacts with a new architecture emphasizing integrity, scalability, and copy-on-write behavior. Investigators face challenges like missing MFTs and altered logging formats, but gain opportunities through ReFS logs, internal checkpoints, and metadata innovations. As adoption rises, DFIR professionals must adapt tools and methods to avoid critical blind spots.
Read More (Mat Cybe3rF0xFuchs, Medium)
Investigating an in-the-wild campaign using RCE in CraftCMS
Orange Cyberdefense uncovers two critical vulnerabilities in Craft CMS, CVE-2025-32432 and CVE-2024-58136, after a forensic investigation reveals pre-auth remote code execution via a Yii framework flaw. Attackers exploited the bug to drop and execute malicious PHP files across thousands of internet-facing sites, prompting coordinated disclosure, patch releases, and widespread detection of compromised Craft CMS assets.
