The FOR509 Course Update Brings Multicloud DFIR Mastery to the Frontlines of Digital Forensics and Incident Response

Contributors: Dave Cowen, Megan Roddie-Fonseca, Pierre Lidome 

Want the full breakdown of the latest FOR509 course content, features, and labs? Check out the 2025 FOR509 Course Update Summary Flyer for a detailed look at what's changed and how it can help your team.

The New Multicloud Battlefield

The battlefield for digital forensics and incident response (DFIR) professionals has changed dramatically. Over 92% of large enterprises now operate in a multicloud environment, yet only 27% have a unified incident response strategy (Source: Flexera State of the Cloud Report 2025 & IDC Research).

This gap isn't just a statistic, it's a vulnerability. Without a coordinated plan spanning AWS, Azure, Google Cloud, Microsoft 365, Google Workspace, and Kubernetes, incidents are handled in silos. Investigations take longer, attackers have more time to move laterally, and damage multiplies.

"Many DFIR professionals have dismissed the cloud as 'someone else's computer,' missing the wealth of new evidence sources and capabilities it offers," says David Cowen. "FOR509 was written to give you a head start in solving cloud-based investigations and taking detection and response to the next level."

The 2025 update to FOR509: Enterprise Cloud Forensics & Incident Response was designed to close this strategic gap, teaching investigators not only how to work within each cloud individually, but also how to unify investigative approaches across providers so nothing falls through the cracks.

Training for Real-World Multicloud Attacks

The new FOR509 course recognizes that in a multicloud world, incidents rarely stay contained to one platform. Attackers often pivot from Microsoft 365 phishing campaigns to Azure privilege escalation, from AWS key abuse to Google Workspace exfiltration--all within the same breach.

Yet without a unified incident response strategy, organizations react piecemeal, wasting precious time and missing the full scope of the attack. This major update to the FOR509 course trains students to think and act across environments, using consistent workflows and evidence correlation techniques that work no matter where the data lives.

Hands-On Learning That Mirrors the Frontlines

"As organizations rapidly move to cloud environments, DFIR professionals must be equipped to defend them," explains course coauthor Megan Roddie-Fonseca. "FOR509 ensures responders know how to obtain, analyze, and interpret cloud evidence so they can keep pace with evolving threats."

The course introduces 25+ new hands-on labs simulating realistic multicloud incidents. These exercises demonstrate how to connect evidence across platforms to eliminated blind spots caused by fragmented processes.

The addition of the multicloud intrusion capstone challenge takes this even further, requiring students to work as a coordinated team across AWS, Azure, and GCP. This mirrors the collaborative, cross-platform response that only 27% of organizations currently have in place and drives home the operational benefits of building a unified strategy before an attack happens.

The course also leverages the upgraded SOF-ELK® VM with expanded log parsers. Students will explore in-cloud tools such as AWS Athena, GuardDuty, Detective; Microsoft Log Analytics Workspace; Google Policy Analyzer, Log Explorer, and Admin Investigation Tool.

"The FOR509 labs were easy to follow along, explained very well and I especially liked the little videos showing the click-by-click navigation around the SOF-ELK tool." - Terrie M., AT&T

Building the Playbook Defenders Need

"As corporations move to the cloud at breakneck speed, defenders need new playbooks," says Pierre Lidome. "The good news is we now have cloud-specific tools and logs to respond faster and better--and that's exactly what FOR509 teaches."

By blending platform-specific skills with cross-cloud coordination techniques, the updated FOR509 course helps organizations turn the current 27% adoption rate into a competitive security advantage.

Students leave the course ready to:

• Investigate complex attacks spanning multiple clouds
• Identify connections between seemingly unrelated events
• Contain incidents quickly--no matter how many environments are involved

For organizations, this means finally having a unified incident response approach that reduces dwell time, improves collaboration, and ensures every piece of evidence contributes to a complete and accurate incident narrative.

Faster Answers, Clearer Reports, Integrated Defense

The new FOR509 course update doesn't just teach where to find evidence, it shows you how to ensure nothing is overlooked when time is running out. The result is faster answers, clearer reports, and a truly integrated defense against modern cloud threats.

"FOR509 gives you a great foundation of the core services you need to understand to enable you to perform DFIR in the cloud while at the same time creating the link between the different cloud providers." - Chester L., Northwestern Mutual

Ready to take your DFIR skills to the next level? Join the newly updated FOR509: Enterprise Cloud Forensics & Incident Response and gain the tools, techniques, and confidence to lead multicloud investigations.

Register now or request a demo to see how the FOR509 course can strengthen your team's response strategy.