Digital Forensics Analyst job description: duties, skills and qualifications.

Core duties

16

O*NET task statements

Preparation

Job Zone 4 of 5

considerable preparation

Typical entry education

Bachelor's degree

BLS 2025–35 · broader occupation

Median pay

$116,580

BLS May 2025 · broader occupation

1. Duplicate digital evidence to use for data recovery and analysis procedures. importance 4.9 of 5
2. Preserve and maintain digital forensic evidence for analysis. importance 4.8 of 5
3. Adhere to legal policies and procedures related to handling digital media. importance 4.8 of 5
4. Write reports, sign affidavits, or give depositions for legal proceedings. importance 4.5 of 5
5. Perform forensic investigations of operating or file systems. importance 4.5 of 5
6. Create system images or capture network settings from information technology environments to preserve as evidence. importance 4.5 of 5
7. Maintain knowledge of laws, regulations, policies or other issuances pertaining to digital forensics or information privacy. importance 4.3 of 5
8. Write technical summaries to report findings. importance 4.3 of 5
9. Perform file signature analysis to verify files on storage media or discover potential hidden files. importance 4.1 of 5
10. Recover data or decrypt seized data. importance 4.1 of 5
11. Develop plans for investigating alleged computer crimes, violations, or suspicious activity. importance 3.9 of 5
12. Analyze log files or other digital information to identify the perpetrators of network intrusions. importance 3.7 of 5
13. Maintain cyber defense software or hardware to support responses to cyber incidents. importance 3.6 of 5
14. Perform web service network traffic analysis or waveform analysis to detect anomalies, such as unusual events or trends. importance 3.6 of 5
15. Develop policies or requirements for data collection, processing, or reporting. importance 3.5 of 5
16. Write cyber defense recommendations, reports, or white papers using research or experience. importance 3.2 of 5

Work activities O*NET rates most important here: Working with Computers, Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge, Analyzing Data or Information, Getting Information and Documenting/Recording Information.

Also part of the job

Supplemental tasks O*NET lists for this occupation: less central than the core duties above, and not done in every job.

• Conduct predictive or reactive analyses on security measures to support cyber security initiatives.
• Write and execute scripts to automate tasks, such as parsing large data files.
• Recommend cyber defense software or hardware to support responses to cyber incidents.

Knowledge areas: Computers and Electronics, Law and Government, English Language and Engineering and Technology.

Software O*NET lists for this occupation: Splunk Enterprise, Amazon Web Services AWS software, Linux, Microsoft PowerShell, Python, Structured query language SQL. These are examples O*NET records for the job, not a list of tools every employer uses or a checklist of what you must know.

• Education: BLS lists a bachelor's degree as the typical entry-level education for the broader occupation.
• Experience: BLS lists no work experience in a related occupation as typical to enter.
• Training on the job: BLS lists no typical on-the-job training once hired.
• Preparation: O*NET places the job in Job Zone 4 of 5 (considerable preparation). A considerable amount of work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is needed for these occupations.
• Licenses and certifications: not listed here. A license is a legal requirement set by a state; a certification is a credential from a private or professional body. Rules vary by state and employer, and a missing entry on this page does not mean none is required: check with your state's licensing board and see how to become a digital forensics analyst.

Most O*NET's occupation experts for this occupation (56%) name a bachelor's degree as the education the job requires.

Job title: Digital Forensics Analyst
[Company] · [City, State] · [Full-time or part-time] · [Pay range, where your state requires one]

About the role
[Company] is hiring a Digital Forensics Analyst to conduct investigations on computer-based crimes establishing documentary or physical evidence, such as digital media and logs associated with cyber intrusion incidents.
[One sentence on your team and why this role matters.]

What you will do
- Duplicate digital evidence to use for data recovery and analysis procedures.
- Preserve and maintain digital forensic evidence for analysis.
- Adhere to legal policies and procedures related to handling digital media.
- Write reports, sign affidavits, or give depositions for legal proceedings.
- Perform forensic investigations of operating or file systems.
- Create system images or capture network settings from information technology environments to preserve as evidence.
- Maintain knowledge of laws, regulations, policies or other issuances pertaining to digital forensics or information privacy.
- Write technical summaries to report findings.

What we are looking for
- [Education: BLS lists a bachelor's degree as typical for this occupation; set the level this role truly needs]
- [Experience: BLS lists no related work experience as typical to enter; set what this role needs]
- Strength in reading comprehension, judgment and decision making and active listening
- Working knowledge of Computers and Electronics and Law and Government
- [Software your team uses, e.g. Splunk Enterprise or Amazon Web Services AWS software]
- [Any license or certification your state or company requires]

[Schedule, benefits and how to apply]

Illustrative: every name, employer, school, date and number in these samples is fictional or a bracketed placeholder. Replace each bracket with your own true details; never copy a result you did not achieve.

Not a real job posting. This template is TryHired's illustration built from government occupational data. It is not an opening at any employer, and no employer wrote it.

For the broader BLS occupation Computer Occupations, All Other, the median annual wage was $116,580 in May 2025. The broader occupation's median hourly wage was $56.05.

BLS counts the O*NET occupation Digital Forensics Analysts within Computer Occupations, All Other and publishes no separate wage for it, so the figure is for that broader occupation.

BLS projects employment in the broader occupation Computer occupations, all other to grow 5.1% from 2025 to 2035, with about 27,000 openings a year over that period, including openings to replace workers who leave.

See the full digital forensics analyst salary breakdown by percentile, state and metro.

• Read a real digital forensics analyst posting next to the core duties above. Duties it repeats, such as “Duplicate digital evidence to use for data recovery and analysis…”, tell you what that employer weighs most; anything it adds is specific to that team.
• Tailor your resume to the posting, not to this page: describe only digital forensics analyst work you have actually done, with your own results.
• Prepare a story for each of the top-rated skills (reading comprehension and judgment and decision making).