SoK: Exploring the State of the Art and the Future Potential of Artificial Intelligence in Digital Forensic Investigation

Du, Xiaoyu; Hargreaves, Chris; Sheppard, John; Anda, Felix; Sayakkara, Asanka; Le-Khac, Nhien-An; Scanlon, Mark

Publication Date:  August 2020

Publication Name:  The 13th International Workshop on Digital Forensics (WSDF), held at the 15th International Conference on Availability, Reliability and Security (ARES)

Abstract:   Multi-year digital forensic backlogs have become commonplace in law enforcement agencies throughout the globe. Digital forensic investigators are overloaded with the volume of cases requiring their expertise compounded by the volume of data to be processed. Artificial intelligence is often seen as the solution to many big data problems. This paper summarises existing artificial intelligence based tools and approaches in digital forensics. Automated evidence processing leveraging artificial intelligence based techniques shows great promise in expediting the digital forensic analysis process while increasing case processing capacities. For each application of artificial intelligence highlighted, a number of current challenges and future potential impact is discussed.

Download Paper:

Download Paper as PDF

BibTeX Entry:


      @inproceedings{du2020SoK-AI-Forensics,
author={Du, Xiaoyu and Hargreaves, Chris and Sheppard, John and Anda, Felix and Sayakkara, Asanka and Le-Khac, Nhien-An and Scanlon, Mark},
title="{SoK: Exploring the State of the Art and the Future Potential of Artificial Intelligence in Digital Forensic Investigation}",
booktitle="{The 13th International Workshop on Digital Forensics (WSDF), held at the 15th International Conference on Availability, Reliability and Security (ARES)}",
series = {ARES '20},
year=2020,
month=08,
location={Dublin, Ireland},
publisher={ACM},
address = {New York, NY, USA},
abstract={Multi-year digital forensic backlogs have become commonplace in law enforcement agencies throughout the globe. Digital forensic investigators are overloaded with the volume of cases requiring their expertise compounded by the volume of data to be processed. Artificial intelligence is often seen as the solution to many big data problems. This paper summarises existing artificial intelligence based tools and approaches in digital forensics. Automated evidence processing leveraging artificial intelligence based techniques shows great promise in expediting the digital forensic analysis process while increasing case processing capacities. For each application of artificial intelligence highlighted, a number of current challenges and future potential impact is discussed.}
}