Standardizing digital forensic examination procedures: A look at Windows 10 in cases involving images depicting child sexual abuse

As a topic area, the need for the standardization of operational practices in digital
forensics has seen much discussion. There are clear benefits for d igital forensics if
its procedures can be harmonized including increasing the reliability of the work
produced by its practitioners, consistency of practice, and the potential for greater
quality control, however, attaining standardization is a difficult task, and further
work in this field is required. This work discusses the “standardization challenge”
assessing both the need for standardization and the feasibility of achieving it. It is
suggested that those actively contributing in this area should consider the develop-
ment of models for defining operational practice which are offence-specific, device-
specific and operating system-specific. To support this proposal, an example stan-
dard is offered and discussed which suggests and documents the minimum
expected requirements for the examination of Windows 10 devices in cases involv-
ing images depicting child sexual abuse