Authors: Eoghan Casey, Jim Jones, Jessica Hyde, Cameron Kelley, Chad Steel
DFRWS USA 2026
Abstract
Report on an interactive working session of practitioner perspectives regarding use of AI in digital forensics casework. This practitioner-led session was held during the Digital Forensics Conference 2026 Americas, organized by DFRWS.org at George Mason University.
Eoghan Casey, Jim Jones, Jessica Hyde, Cameron Kelley, and Chad Steel each shared their experiences and led group discussions, guided by live audience polls projected on a large screen to help focus on participants’ perspectives.
Topics addressed include performance evaluation of AI, appropriate and inappropriate use of AI in digital forensics, grounding AI in digital forensics expertise to improve reliability and accuracy, AI engineering and guardrails, and investigator/attorneys self-service AI analysis of digital evidence.