DFIR In 2025 – AI, Smart Devices And Investigator Well-Being
Release Date: 02/11/2025
Cumulative Trauma In Digital Forensics And Policing With Ben Dimmock
Forensic Focus
Ben Dimmock, Police Well-Being Lead at Bedfordshire Police, joins the Forensic Focus Podcast to talk about psychological safety, trauma exposure, and the long-term emotional toll of working in policing and digital forensics. Ben shares his own experience of depression 12 years into his service, the stigma that made him hide it, and how opening up eventually led him to build and lead one of the largest full-time police well-being teams in the country. He and host Paul explore why well-being has to be treated as an operational necessity rather than a "pink and fluffy" add-on, and how a culture...
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David Shipley: Investigating The Darkest Corners Of Digital Evidence
Forensic Focus
David Shipley, Instructor at Anglia Ruskin University, joins the Forensic Focus Podcast to talk about the human cost of online safeguarding work and his fight to close a gap in UK law. Drawing on 16 years investigating abusive imagery and online child sexual offending, David reflects on what the work actually involves — from the scale of the problem and the relentless build-up of warrants and digital forensic backlogs, to the difficult triage decisions investigators must make when no team can examine every device. He's candid about what "safeguarding" really means in practice, and about the...
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Leica's Marcus Rowe On Investigating The World's Largest Crash Test, Plus What To Expect At FEE 2026
Forensic Focus
Marcus Rowe, Business Director – Public Safety & Forensics at Leica Geosystems, joins the Forensic Focus Podcast to talk about 3D laser scanning, forensic digital twins, and the role of LiDAR in modern crime and collision investigation. Marcus shares his path from military and civilian policing — including a career in forensic collision investigation with Devon & Cornwall Police — into industry, and explains how Leica Geosystems (part of Hexagon) is empowering investigators with tools that capture entire scenes for analysis, courtroom presentation, and cold case review. Marcus...
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Burnout, PTSD, Suicidal Thoughts – The DFIR Well-Being Study Results Are In
Forensic Focus
Phil Anderson, Senior Lecturer at Northumbria University, joins the Forensic Focus Podcast to talk about the Forensic Focus International Well-Being Study. Phil and host Paul Gullon-Scott unpack the findings from a survey of 179 digital forensic investigators across the UK, US, Australia, Canada, Germany, South Africa, India, and beyond. The study used validated psychometric instruments to put hard numbers behind what the profession has been hearing anecdotally for years. Paul and Phil dig into the emerging impact of AI-generated CSAM, where 60% of respondents reported finding it slightly more...
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On-Scene Digital Forensics: Winning Investigations Before The Lab
Forensic Focus
Stuart Hutchinson, VP of Sales at ADF Solutions, joins the Forensic Focus Podcast to talk about on-scene digital forensics and empowering first responders during the golden hour. Stuart shares his journey from 23 years with the Met Police — including a chance encounter in a New Scotland Yard lift that led him into Mac forensics and the vendor space at BlackBag, Cellebrite, Oxygen, and now ADF. With 99.9% of investigations involving a digital element, he argues that mishandling digital evidence at the scene is as damaging as trampling through traditional forensic evidence. The conversation...
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How Distressing Material Shapes Investigator Well-Being
Forensic Focus
Dr. Fazeelat Duran, Assistant Professor in Psychology at the University of Birmingham, joins the Forensic Focus Podcast to talk about the psychological impact of working with distressing material in law enforcement roles. Drawing on her recent longitudinal study — the first of its kind to follow newly recruited secondary investigators and analysts from day one through 18 months in role — Dr. Duran explains how repeated, indirect exposure to traumatic material shapes mental health over time. She walks through the trajectory her team observed at six, 12, and 18 months, the concept of "dosage...
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DFIR In 2026 – AI ‘Button Pusher’ Forensics, Writing Courtroom Reports, Audio Breakthroughs And The Leica Geosystems Conference
Forensic Focus
Si and Desi discuss a range of digital forensics topics, from writing forensic reports that juries can actually understand, to whether AI is coming for "button pusher" DFIR jobs. They explore plain language standards, the classic confusion between forensic "images" and pictures, and Brett Shavers' provocative blog post on AI and job security — leading into a wider discussion about the distinction between technicians and analysts in digital forensics. Si shares highlights from the Leica Geosystems Conference, including fascinating audio forensics research by Henry Vega on deriving vehicle...
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Policing's Well-Being Problem: Stigma, Isolation And The Retention Crisis
Forensic Focus
Dr Sarah-Jane Lennie, Associate Professor at the Centre of Excellence for Equity in Uniformed Public Services at Anglia Ruskin University, joins the Forensic Focus Podcast to talk about mental health and well-being in policing — and the often-overlooked toll on police families. Drawing on 17 years as a police officer before moving into academia, Dr Lennie shares the moment her own mental health forced a career-defining decision, and how that experience shaped her research into the culture of silencing, stigma, and emotional masking that still pervades policing today. She explains why the...
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Rob Fried On New Challenges In Digital Forensics
Forensic Focus
Rob Fried, digital forensics consultant, author, and assistant professor at Hofstra University, joins the Forensic Focus Podcast to talk about the evolving challenges of forensic practice, AI in investigations, and his latest book. Rob discusses his annual publication cadence — now in its fourth edition — and how each year's content is shaped by real cases, collaborations, and emerging topics in the DFIR community. This year's edition tackles AI policy, data culling strategy, and the documentation practices that keep forensic work defensible in court. The conversation also covers the...
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Preparing Investigators For Trauma Exposure In Digital Forensics
Forensic Focus
📝 Complete the Forensic Focus International Well-Being Study: https://www.forensicfocus.com/survey Bunmi Bloom, co-founder of Sena Forensics, joins the Forensic Focus Podcast to discuss the emotional reality of working in digital forensics and the psychological toll of long-term exposure to traumatic material. Drawing on her background with the Metropolitan Police and the Financial Conduct Authority, Bunmi reflects on how DFIR practitioners navigate disturbing images, case reports, and the pressure to “stay strong and get on with it.” The conversation explores coping mechanisms inside...
info_outlineSi and Desi kick off 2025 with a deep dive into critical trends shaping digital forensics. They tackle pressing challenges such as AI-driven threats, including deepfakes and AI-generated images, and examine the security risks associated with connected devices. The discussion also explores the ongoing impact of the pandemic on mental health, remote work, and the forensic community's well-being.
With a focus on practical insights and support for forensic professionals, they cover evolving threats, emerging technologies, and the importance of mental resilience in the field. Stay tuned for updates on future podcast guests, conferences, and new tech developments.
Don't forget to check the show notes for resources, including mental health support services and recommended reading.
00:00 Welcome to 2025
01:10 AI in Law: Conference Insights from Luxembourg
03:07 The Impact of AI on Social Media and Deepfakes
05:03 AI-Generated Images
06:51 The Future of Digital Watermarking and Cybersecurity
11:59 Advancements in AI and Desktop Supercomputers
21:37 The Rise of Smart Home Devices and Security Concerns
23:16 Privacy Issues with Medical Devices and Data Collection
31:14 Predictive Algorithms and the Dystopian Future
32:12 Apple's Siri Payout
32:35 Films Predicting 2025
34:18 US Strategic Preparation Plans
37:04 Mental Health in 2024
44:08 Impact of Remote Work
51:17 The Role of Gossip in Society
59:19 Cyber Threats and Mental Health
01:01:05 Final Thoughts and Resources
Show Notes
NVIDIA Puts Grace Blackwell on Every Desk and at Every AI Developer’s Fingertips, Nvidia News - https://nvidianews.nvidia.com/news/nvidia-puts-grace-blackwell-on-every-desk-and-at-every-ai-developers-fingertips
US man used AI to generate 13,000 child sexual abuse pictures, FBI alleges, The Guardian - https://www.theguardian.com/technology/article/2024/may/21/child-sexual-abuse-material-artificial-intelligence-arrest
Tasmanian jailed for possessing AI-generated child abuse material, AFP - https://www.afp.gov.au/news-centre/media-release/tasmanian-jailed-possessing-ai-generated-child-abuse-material
Raspberry Pi - https://www.raspberrypi.com/products/raspberry-pi-5/
Rise of killer robot fridges as experts warn kitchen appliances getting 'smarter', Daily Star - https://www.dailystar.co.uk/tech/rise-killer-robot-fridges-experts-34387400
‘I’m Possibly Alive Because It Exists:’ Why Sleep Apnea Patients Rely on a CPAP Machine Hacker, Vice - https://www.vice.com/en/article/im-possibly-alive-because-it-exists-why-sleep-apnea-patients-rely-on-a-cpap-machine-hacker/
Raven Rock: The Story of the U.S. Government’s Secret Plan to Save Itself — While the Rest of Us Die, Goodreads - https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25813952-raven-rock
While the Rest of Us Die: Secrets of America's Shadow Government, Wikipedia - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/While_the_Rest_of_Us_Die:_Secrets_of_America's_Shadow_Government
Sandy Hook Promise - https://www.sandyhookpromise.org/
The Selfish Gene, Goodreads - https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/61535.The_Selfish_Gene
Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind, Goodreads - https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23692271-sapiens
Unexpected Privacy Risks in CPAP Machine Updates, LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/unexpected-privacy-risks-cpap-machine-updates-ryan-chalupovitsch-gh2kc/
Canceling the apocalypse? What can we learn from films set in 2025, The Guardian - https://www.theguardian.com/film/2025/jan/02/what-learn-movie-set-future
Forensic Focus Discord - https://discord.gg/97zKvTXHeS
If you have been affected by any of the issues raised in this episode, these organisations may be of help:
Samaritans – https://www.samaritans.org
Mind – https://www.mind.org.uk
Oscar Kilo – https://www.oscarkilo.org.uk/
Occupational health unit (OHU) – all police forces have access to an OHU providing a range of support services
Employee Assistance Scheme (EAS) – check with your employer to see what specific resources are available to you
GP – your GP can provide access to various local resources and make referrals to psychological support services
Beyond Blue - https://www.beyondblue.org.au/