Certified:  Ask what certifications they hold.  EnCE and Law Enforcements' IACIS's CFE are the most widely accepted.  Don't be confused by certifications for IT Security, these may not have strict forensic requirements.

CyberEvidence (CE) has 6 EnCEs on staff as well as 2  EnCIs (EnCase Certified Instructors) and numerous IT and software certifications and computer forensic professional board memberships, affiliations and relationships.  Additionally, CyberEvidence is licensed and regulated as Computer Forensic Investigator under Texas Department of Public Safety rules as a "Private Investigator" practice.

We have successfully investigated the smallest  256MB drive up through full-blown thousand-seat network intrusion investigations.   Our expert witness has been admitted by several courts as an expert witness, most notably, he has been the key expert to a Texas criminal case where the judge awarded an additional 10 years to the sentence to be served based on our findings.
- With over 30 years of law enforcement, IT, and forensic experience, CE is a team of experts in all facets of digital investigations.  We have experience from military cyber-security through hardware and software expertise.

Specialized Are they doing forensics as another way to bill hours to their other services?  They may lack the depth and breadth in forensics and even in worse case scenarios, contaminate evidence due to lack of experience

CyberEvidence sole specialty is Computer Forensics.  We are the only Guidance Software, Inc (GSI)  Licensed US Training Partner for EnCase^®, the industry leading software used by 80% of certified digital investigators.

Respected  Check out their referrals, ensure the company has a good reputation, is well respected in the community and would be referred to by both its clients and its peers.

Some of our best referral work comes from the best computer forensics experts (Government or Industry) in the country!   Our competitors are our best referrals!   We also have numerous large enterprise clients that use us or refer business to us in addition to our satisfied law firms or independent attorneys. 

Affiliated   What relevant education and training do they have? What professional organizations are they affiliated with?  What are the backgrounds of the staff?  Hackers or professionals?

CyberEvidence only hires professional, ethical experts with integrity and sound background histories.  Our team consists of ex-law enforcement, military, government contractors, college instructors, and computer technologists.  We're active participants in computer forensic related professional associations like:  HTCIA, InfraGard, ASIS, ISSA, IACIS, NWC3 and so on.  

Equipped   Do they have a forensic lab and evidence locker that support good chain of custody rules?  Is their software validated and tested for court admissibility and is it a legally licensed copy?

CyberEvidence has set the standard for computer forensic labs, workstations, and secure evidence storage, advising other agencies on setting up their labs.   CE uses court validated EnCase software and has available, other industry standard software solutions for validation and verifications.

Responsive  The worst thing that could happen to your case is to lose or miss critical evidence because the investigator you hired didn't get to the computer in time to preserve the data or can not complete your case on time and present it in a reliable format.  You’ve wasted money and may lose your case!

Successful  Ensure your computer forensic expert has reputable referrals.  Do be careful in requesting success in findings as not all clients identify the need for forensics in time or identify the correct person or computer as the evidence source. 

We have been instrumental in assisting individuals, corporations and law firms in tracking and recovering millions in corporate assets.  Our motto is “Trust the Experts Who Train the Experts!” 

Methodological   What standards, procedures, and methods have they employed to ensure the evidence is not tainted?

Our lab set-up is a standard-setting facility with extensive forensic capabilities.  Our processes are systematic, established, reliable, and repeatable; using the latest technology for collecting court-ready and fully defendable digital evidence.  Our publications on computer forensic methodologies and techniques have been included in text books and referred to by national magazines.

Secure Custodians   Ensure your computer forensic expert offers a confidentiality agreement and adheres to protecting your client's intellectual property.  Ask how they secure and protect evidence and ensure chain of custody.

CyberEvidence team has experience in evidence locker and custodian standards and has applied those standards as facility requirements.  We have experience in some of the highest military security standards and hold our employees accountable to protect confidential case information.