Forensication Education: Towards a Digital Forensics Instructional Framework

The field of digital forensics is a diverse and fast-paced branch of cyber investigations. Unfortunately, common efforts to train individuals in this area have been inconsistent and ineffective, as curriculum managers attempt to plug in off-the-shelf courses without an overall educational strategy. The aim of this study is to identify the most effective instructional design features for a future entry-level digital forensics course. To achieve this goal, an expert panel of digital forensics professionals was assembled to identify and prioritize the features, which included general learning outcomes, specific learning goals, instructional delivery formats, instructor characteristics, and assessment strategies. Data was collected from participants using validated group consensus methods such as Delphi and cumulative voting. The product of this effort was the Digital Forensics Framework for Instruction Design (DFFID), a comprehensive digital forensics instructional framework meant to guide the development of future digital forensics curricula.