Summary

Are you interested in a career with the FBI as a Digital Forensic Examiner (DFE)? At the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Digital Forensic Examiners apply their technical skills and experience to preserve and analyze digital evidence related to FBI investigations. As key members of the Computer Analysis and Response Team (CART), Digital Forensic Examiners work with advanced technologies, forensic concepts, software, and tools to solve the Bureau's most challenging cases.

This job is open to

The public

U.S. Citizens, Nationals or those who owe allegiance to the U.S.

Federal employees - Competitive service

Current federal employees whose agencies follow the U.S. Office of Personnel Management's hiring rules and pay scales.

Federal employees - Excepted service

Current federal employees whose agencies have their own hiring rules, pay scales and evaluation criteria.

Internal to an agency

Current federal employees of the hiring agency that posted the job announcement.

Career transition (CTAP, ICTAP, RPL)

Federal employees whose job, agency or department was eliminated and are eligible for priority over other applicants.

Veterans

Veterans of the U.S. Armed Forces or a spouse, widow, widower or parent of a veteran, who may be eligible for derived preference

Military spouses

Military spouses of active duty service members or whose spouse is 100 percent disabled or died on active duty.

Individuals with disabilities

Individuals who are eligible under Schedule A.

Clarification from the agency

All U.S. Citizens.

Duties

Plans, coordinates, and directs forensic science activities to include expert examinations, reporting of results, training, and research that involve all aspects of digital evidence.
Inventories, examines, retrieves, and performs comprehensive technical analyses of digital evidence without altering original.
Prepares evidence for examination from crime scene.
Serves as technical consultant by providing up-to-date training in computer examinations detailing the latest technology, supporting information, and reviews of new products to agents, federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies.
May be required to testify in court as to the procedures and methods used to obtain data.
Prepares and furnishes authoritative oral and written reports on opinions and findings to stakeholders with the law enforcement community.

Requirements

Conditions of employment

Must be a U.S. citizen.
Must have (or be able to obtain) a valid driver's license.
May be required to obtain a Top Secret-SCI clearance.
Some travel may be required.
All new Digital Forensic Examiners must attend the in-residence Digital Forensic Examiner Certification course at the FBI Redstone Arsenal Campus.
ALL applicants must verify completion of the basic education requirement by submitting a copy of college transcripts by the closing date of the vacancy announcement.

Qualifications

GS-7: Applicant must possess at least one (1) year of SE equivalent to the GS-5 grade level. SE is defined as follows:

Performed routine data searches to retrieve data and/or digital evidence.
Provided oral and written communications to exchange and/or present IT related information.

GS-9: Applicant must possess at least one (1) year of SE equivalent to the GS-7 grade level. SE is defined as follows:

Planned and completed assignments while adhering to established instructions, policies, practices, and procedures.
Established and maintained working relationships with internal and external stakeholders to exchange information, assisting in research while providing recommendations to methods and techniques to evaluate data, digital evidence, a variety of technologies and/or analytical support.
Utilized computer related hardware and software to preserve, extract and analyze data and/or digital evidence.

GS-11: Applicant must possess at least one (1) year of SE equivalent to the GS-9 grade level. SE is defined as follows:

Conducted routine examinations of data and/or digital evidence, using established policies, procedures and precedent techniques.
Utilized computer related hardware and software to identify, collect, examine, preserve, and duplicate data and/or digital evidence.
Communicated orally and in writing to prepare and present reports, briefings, information and findings obtained during investigations.
Provided guidance to a variety of internal and external stakeholders in the examination and retrieval of data and/or digital evidence, ensuring proper established practices and protocols are followed.

GS-12: Applicant must possess at least one (1) year of SE equivalent to the GS-11 grade level. SE is defined as follows:

Planned, coordinated and directed activities related to the examination, analysis, and reporting of data and/or digital evidence.
Served as a Subject Matter Expert, providing onsite technical guidance and collaborating with stakeholders to examine data and/or digital evidence to identify, diagnose, and resolve error and problem conditions.
Served as a mentor to others, providing guidance and training on technical matters related to the collection and analysis of data and/or digital evidence.
Communicated findings and/or opinions to stakeholders of IT related examinations conducted.

Education

BASIC REQUIREMENT
All personnel must have at least 24 college level semester hours from an accredited college or university in one or more of the following disciplines:

Computer Science
Engineering
Information Science
Information Systems Management
Mathematics
Operations Research
Statistics
Technology Management
Information Systems Analysis
Computer/Digital/Electronic Forensics
Science/Technology (other than physical sciences)
- Acceptable:
  - Physics/Astrophysics
  - Chemistry/Organic Chemistry
- Unacceptable:
  - Astronomy
  - Geology
  - Biology
Management Information Systems
Information Technology Systems
Data Structure and Design

AND

A Baccalaureate degree from an accredited college or university;

OR

Technical Experience:
Four (4) years of full-time experience working as either a technician or forensic examiner (consistent with FBI digital evidence program definitions) within a digital evidence facility that supports criminal investigations and has an external accreditation or internal quality assurance framework.

Hybrid:

Consideration for admission under the Hybrid path is a combination of education and work experience equal or greater than four (4) years. The Digital Evidence Staffing Education & Development Unit (DESED) will combine the full-time work experience, time given for Work Time Experience (WTE) based on certificates/certifications, and time given for academic credit hours to calculate the require four (4) years:

Full-time experience working as either a technician or forensic examiner (consistent with FBI digital evidence program definitions) within a digital evidence facility that supports criminal investigations, and has an external accreditation or internal quality assurance framework.
Technical and computer forensic industry accepted professional certificates/certifications will be reviewed and assign equivalent WTE based on difficulty of the certificate/certification received, DESED will document and maintain a list of accepted and denied certificates/certifications and their assigned WTE.
Two (2) weeks per credit hours will be given for any course over 200 level or equivalent in the following disciplines:
- Computer Science
- Engineering
- Information Science
- Information Systems Management
- Mathematics
- Operations Research
- Statistics
- Technology Management
- Information Systems Analysis
- Computer/Digital/Electronic Forensics
- Science/Technology (other than physical sciences)
- Management Information Systems
- Information Technology Systems
- Data Structure and Design

Current Certification:

Personnel who hold a current FBI Digital Forensic Examiner certification, are up-to-date with all requirements for a current FBI Digital Forensic Examiner, and have been continuously certified as an FBI Digital Forensic Examiner for more than one (1) year.

Education completed in foreign colleges or universities may be used to meet the above requirements provided you can show foreign education is comparable to that received in an accredited educational institution in the United States.

All degrees must be from an accredited college or university. Education may be substituted for specialized experience as follows:

GS-7: Applicant must have a bachelor's degree with superior academic achievement or one (1) full year of graduate level education. Superior academic achievement is the completion of all the requirements of a bachelor's degree from an accredited college or university, which is based on (1) class standing, (2) grade-point average of 3.0 or higher as recorded on an official transcript, or as based on courses completed during the final two years of the curriculum, or (3) honor society membership.

GS-9: Applicant must have a master's or equivalent graduate degree or 2 full years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to such a degree or LL.B. or J.D., if related.

GS-11: Applicant must have a Ph.D. OR equivalent doctoral degree OR 3 full years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to such a degree OR LL.M., if related.

GS-12: Education may not be substituted in lieu of experience at this grade level.

Additional information

NOTE: The salaries listed above are the base rate of pay for federal employees on the General Schedule (GS) pay scale. Current locality pay tables are available on OPM.gov. Please be advised that in some locations the IT Specialist - Digital Forensic Examiner position may fall under a Special Rate Table. Special Rate Tables 999B, 999C, 999D, 999F, 99AA, 99AH, and 99AP may be used based on location and/or grade.

To attract and retain highly qualified candidates, selectees may be eligible for a recruitment incentive of up to 20% or, for eligible current federal employees, a relocation incentive of up to 10%. Eligibility for a relocation incentive requires proof of a change in residence and an assignment at a worksite in a different geographic area greater than or equal to 50 miles from the prior worksite. Employees must sign a written service agreement completing a specified period of employment with the FBI at the new duty station. Recruitment and relocation incentives cannot be combined.

Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.

Review our benefits

How you will be evaluated

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

Your application will be evaluated using the FBI's Candidate Rating Procedures. Your resume and supporting documents will be reviewed to verify that you meet the job qualifications listed in this announcement and will be compared against your responses to the online assessment questionnaire. If your self-assessment in the vacancy questions is not supported by details in your resume or supporting documents, you may be disqualified from the Most Competitive category. Veterans' preference will be applied. Applicants must meet the qualification requirements by the closing date of this announcement.

If you are deemed Most Competitive, you will be referred to the selecting official for further consideration.

All applicants will be rated on the following Competencies:

Analytic Thinking
Collaboration
Communication
Customer Service
Problem Solving/Judgment
Technology Awareness

Positive Education Requirement

This position has a specific education requirement; all applicants must verify completion of this basic educational requirement by submitting a copy of their college transcripts by the closing date of the vacancy announcement.

If an applicant is a current FBI IT Specialist - Digital Forensic Examiner, please upload a copy of your CART training record. Applicants currently in this position are not required to attach their transcripts since they are already associated with the CART Program.

Required Documents

A two-page resume that outlines relevant work experience and associated start and end dates. Resumes exceeding two pages will not be considered.
A complete assessment questionnaire.
Other supporting documents (if applicable):
- College transcripts, if qualifying based on education or if there is a positive education requirement
- Notification of Personnel Action, SF-50; not applicable to current FBI employees
- Most recent Performance Appraisal; not applicable to current FBI employees
  Veterans: DD 214; Disabled Veterans: DD 214, SF-15, and VA letter dated 1991 or later
- Memorandum for Record (MFR): Work performed outside assigned duties (that would not normally be documented on an SF-50, i. e., back-up duties), has to be documented in detail by an immediate supervisor in order to receive full credit for amount of time worked in that position. If no documentation is furnished no credit will be given for time worked in that position. The following notations must be specified in the documentation:
  - Percent of time worked in the particular position (cannot conflict with main duties.
  - The month/year work began
    Frequency worked (i.e., daily, monthly, etc.)
  - Specific duties performed

How to Apply

To apply for the Digital Forensic Examiner position, please click here.

Agency contact information

Kari DeMicco

Email: kdemicco@fbi.gov

Address: Federal Bureau of Investigation
935 Pennsylvania Ave, NW
Washington, DC 20535
US

Next steps

Once your complete application is received, we will conduct an evaluation of your qualifications and determine your ranking. The Most Competitive candidates will be referred to the hiring manager for further consideration and possible interview. You will be notified of your status throughout the process.

Additional locations

San Francisco, CA

Kansas City, MO

Jackson, MS

Albuquerque, NM

Cleveland, OH

Seattle, WA

Digital Forensic Examiner Job