Since CDFS’ formal launch in August 2011, we have formed four committees to work on issues directly affecting the worldwide digital forensics community. Those committees include:

The Advocacy Committee

Led by committee chair Donald Mason and board representatives Christopher Kelly and Toby Finnie, the Advocacy Committee is working to address issues such as state legislative efforts to mandate private investigator licensing for digital forensic examiners. The Advocacy Committee will also develop educational materials about digital forensics for judges and prosecutors.

The Ethics Committee

Led by committee chair Gregg Gunsch and board representatives Troy Larson and Gary Kessler, the Ethics Committee has been putting together an internal code of ethics for CDFS members. Currently, the responsible subcommittee has completed a draft document, which will next be submitted to the Ethics Committee at large and the CDFS Board of Directors this month. Following their approval, the draft will make its way to the CDFS membership.

The Ethics Committee has also been actively gathering information about different existing codes of ethics that currently are in use in the digital forensics community.

The Standards Committee

Led by committee chair Pavel Gladyshev and board representatives Bill Crane and Eoghan Casey, the Standards Committee is working on a gap analysis project regarding current licensing, ethical, and other standards in digital forensics. As part of that process and in partnership with new organizational member KPMG, they are collecting information about standards initiatives across the globe.

The Outreach Committee

Led by committee chair Christa Miller and board representative Cindy Murphy, the Outreach Committee has been working on CDFS’ communications needs, including social networking, this blog, the website, press releases, and other outreach functions. As other committees begin to generate work product, we’ll share the results here and elsewhere. We plan to try to post information weekly, so please subscribe.

If you have an interest in volunteering to assist in the important work being done by CDFS committees, please consider joining and volunteering!  More information on how to join can be found on the CDFS Membership Page.

There has been much recent activity in the US in the area of digital forensic examiner licensing. States like Illinois, Alabama, and South Carolina have all recently considered legislation on the subject. More recent amendments to one of these bills contemplates registration by a state board, as an alternative to licensing.

Some digital forensic examiners see value in licensing. Some oppose. We would like to hear your opinion on licensing. Have you thought about registration? Some other countries are contemplating licensing now.

What, if anything, is happening in your country or jurisdiction? What are the pros and cons as you see them?

Share your thoughts and opinions by posting your comment below. It is through debate and discussion that we have an opportunity to consider all the important perspectives on any particular issue. All opinions and thoughts are welcome. If you don’t want to share publicly, feel free to email your comments to chris.kelly@cdfs.org.