5 Best Digital Forensics Tools & Software for 2021

 5 Best Digital Forensics Tools & Software for 2021

Aug 18 2021

For everything from minor network infractions to devastating cyberattacks and data privacy troubles, digital forensics software can help clean up the mess and get to the root of what happened.

 

Since the inception of data forensics almost forty years ago, methods for investigating security events have given way to a market of vendors and tools offering digital forensics software (DFS).

 

While several open-source tools exist for disk and data capture, network analysis, and specific device forensics, a growing number of vendors are building off what’s publicly available. As cybercrime flourishes and evolves, organizations need a fleet of tools to defend and investigate incidents.

 

This article looks at the top digital forensic software tools of 2021 and what customers should consider when buying or acquiring a DSF tool.

 

 

Starting with the most popular open-source digital investigation tools, The Sleuth Kit (TSK) and Autopsy have long been reliable solutions for volume system forensic analysis. The Sleuth Kit enables administrators to analyze file system data via a library of command-line tools for investing disk images. Autopsy is its GUI and a digital forensics platform used widely in public and private computer system investigations to boost TSK’s abilities.

 

Analysts consider The Sleuth Kit and Autopsy to be one of the best available solutions for disk and data capture tools. For an open-source product, this combination is user-friendly and extensible for an array of users and devices. Critical capabilities include timeline analysis, hash filtering, file and folder flagging, and multimedia extraction.

 

OpenText

 

Founded in 1991 in Waterloo, Ontario, OpenText offers enterprise content management, networking, automation, discovery, security, and analytics services. Under their Security Suite products, OpenText provides industry-renowned EnCase. EnCase solutions include Endpoint Security (EDR), Endpoint Investigator (DFIR), Forensic, Mobile Investigator, and Advanced Detection.

 

Together, EnCase’s capabilities include recovering evidence from multiple device types and hard drives, automating the preparation of evidence, deep and triage analysis, and in-depth evidence collection and preservation. Like TSK and Autopsy, OpenText specializes in disk and data capture tools.

 

CAINE

 

The Computer-Aided Investigative Environment (CAINE) is an open-source Ubuntu- and Linux-based distribution created by Italian developers for digital forensic purposes. CAINE offers interoperable software that integrates with existing security tools to provide a user-friendly GUI. As it’s open-source, organizations can redistribute and modify their needs for Windows, Linux, and Unix systems.

 

Some of the critical features CAINE provides are automatic extraction of timelines from RAM, configurable features and tools, and a handful of other tools that make our list for top DSF solutions. These tools include TSK and Autopsy, Wireshark, and PhotoRec, making CAINE a comprehensive pick for Linux distros specializing in digital forensic investigations.

 

SANS SIFT

 

Another top Linux distro for digital forensics and incident response (DFIR) is the Ubuntu-based SIFT Workstation. Offering an array of free and open-source DFIR solutions, the SIFT Workstation provides three options for deployment: Download virtual machine, Native installation on Ubuntu system, or Installation on Windows via Linux subsystem.

 

Developed by the SANS Institute in 2007, SIFT works on 64-bit OS, automatically updates the software with the latest forensic tools and techniques, and is a memory optimizer. Customers cite its efficacy given its open availability for organizations and the ability to create snapshots and avoid cross-contamination utilizing the VM appliance.

 

 

Volatility

The first version of Volatility was launched at Black Hat and DefCon in 2007 and based its services around academic research into advanced memory analysis and forensics. Today the nonprofit Volatility Foundation is a top digital forensics vendor because of its innovative memory forensics technology. Investigators know Volatility for its tools that analyze runtime states using RAM data.

 

Compatible with Windows, Linux, and macOS, Volatility uses in-depth research into OS internals, malicious code, and anomalies to enhance its tools. Features that Volatility offers include an embedded API for lookups of PTE flags, support for Kernel Address Space Layout Randomization (KASLR), and automated execution of Failure command after multiple failed starts.

 

X-Ways

 

X-Ways Forensics is based on the WinHex hex and disk editor and offers three additional tools to provide advanced disk and data capture software. Investigators can use WinHex or X-Ways’ Forensics, Investigator, and Imager for disk cloning and imaging with an integrated computer forensic environment.

 

A few of the noteworthy features X-Ways offers include automatic detection of lost or deleted partitions, read partitioning for file system structures inside .dd image files, and analysis of remote computers. X-Ways tools can access disks and RAID configurations and easily detect NTFS and ADS. With templates to view and edit binary data, administrators can also provide write protection for preserving data integrity.