Why DFIR Investigative Thinking is Critical—and Why It’s So Hard to Teach

Why DFIR Investigative Thinking is Critical—and Why It’s So Hard to Teach

In DFIR, the investigative mindset is the difference between solving cases and missing crucial evidence. While we’ve become skilled at teaching tools, certifications, and degrees, we’ve neglected this essential skill—and without it, even experienced practitioners risk becoming little more than button-pushers.

DFIR training courses have always been, and should always be about the processes and procedures of identifying evidence. Find this artifact, push this button, correlate with other artifacts, push these other buttons, etc.. We must know how to work the tools when we identify evidence.

But investigative thinking is not just a technical skill; it’s a mindset. It’s the ability to think critically, see beyond the surface, identify crucial evidence, anticipate behaviors, follow trails that aren’t obvious, and make fast, informed decisions, all leading to attribution. It’s this mindset that turns a technician into a true investigator. The DFIR Investigative Mindset can be summed up in one word: discernment.

Why the DFIR Investigative Mindset is Hard to Teach

Traditional training* struggles with this mindset for three key reasons:

1. Colleges teach technical skills but lack access to real-world, messy cases that mirror the chaos investigators face daily. Synthetic scenarios don’t prepare you for the complex, ambiguous data you’ll see in the field.
2. On-the-Job Training (OJT) works if you have strong mentors. But without structured support, you’re learning through trial and error—often making critical mistakes that could end your career.
3. Self-Learning provides tools and techniques, but without feedback or real-world cases, it’s easy to develop bad habits or miss key learning moments. You don’t know what you don’t know.

These approaches miss the most critical aspects: reflection, self-awareness, and emotional intelligence. While it takes years to truly develop an investigative mindset, you can jumpstart the process, save years of trial and error, and flatten the learning curve by being shown the path.

Leslie Carhart simply states the difficulty in teaching this skill:

This is not a new problem. The ACPO in 2005 wrote that the investigative mindset is required, but it can’t be taught—ironic, isn’t it? Experienced DFIRers constantly state that “it” can’t be taught. I disagree, to an extent. The path can be shown for practitioners to follow, and greatly shorten the learning process to mastering an investigative mindset (with fewer mistakes!).

Many in DFIR, practitioners and experts, repeat that “it” simply can’t be taught (https://youtu.be/DxBprtJdGOE?feature=shared&t=1389).

Why I’m Giving Away 1,000 Books

I believe so strongly in the importance of the investigative mindset that I’m giving away 1,000 copies of my book. Yes, I’ll cover the cost, and I’ll even pay for shipping. Why? Because I want to share the skills I’ve spent decades developing.

I ask that you spend two hours with me in exchange for the free book. During this time, I’ll teach you a few key principles of the DFIR investigative mindset and guide you through a simple challenge. You’ll leave with a $59.99 book and decades of experience in thinking critically, making decisions under pressure, and avoiding mistakes that can derail an investigation—or your career.

This is a one-time offer for those who have not yet purchased the book. Over 3,000 copies have already been sold, and I want to give away another 1,000 book to expose new readers of the book to impact their careers and help better serve victims in future cases. Don’t miss your chance to gain decades of insight in just two hours. Hundreds have already signed up. If you want to be next, add your name to the list here:

https://www.suspectbehindthekeyboard.com/dfir-mindset-challenge

I Take This Seriously

Being part of a case that saves lives is indescribable. The difference between success and failure in our work is profound—and it’s often determined by the investigator’s mindset.

Several past cases haunt me, with one in particular having a significant impact. An experienced detective was assigned to a missing teen case. I was asked to assist, and the teen was later found dead and buried. The detective assigned to the case made critical and avoidable errors. By “experienced detective,” I mean he had years on the job but lacked the investigative mindset needed to solve a case like this. It was a tragic outcome—and one that may have been prevented.

I’ve witnessed other cases where poor investigative thinking has ruined lives. Technology has a life-and-death impact now more than ever, and the consequences of missed evidence or poor decisions will only increase as it touches more aspects of our lives. Even in a “common” civil litigation case, a business can be wrongly bankrupted by poor casework, resulting in financial devastation not only for business owners but also for their employees.

Everything I teach comes from decades of experience—both successes and failures—learning from dozens of great investigators. I’ve learned how not to do cases from just as many terrible investigators.

I want to have an impact on preventing these tragedies. I approach every case with the utmost care and concern because each case directly, intimately, and substantially affects people. Consider your effect on others with every case you touch.

Now you know why I write and teach practitioners whose DFIR work and mindset affect victims.

Mastering the DFIR investigative mindset won’t just help you solve cases—it will give you an edge in your career. You’ll see what others miss, do what others only dream of, and make justice happen.

*exceptions exist, yes, but the vast majority…no.