Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Forensic Investigation Process: Dji Phantom 3 Drone As A Case Study

Abstract

Drones (also known as Unmanned Aerial Vehicles, UAVs) is a potential source of evidence in a digital investigation, partly due to their increasing popularity in our society. However, existing UAV/drone forensics generally rely on conventional digital forensic investigation guidelines such as those of ACPO and NIST, which may not be entirely fit_for_purpose. In this paper, we identify the challenges associated with UAV/drone forensics. We then explore and evaluate existing forensic guidelines, in terms of their effectiveness for UAV/drone forensic investigations. Next, we present our set of guidelines for UAV/drone investigations. Finally, we demonstrate how the proposed guidelines can be used to guide a drone forensic investigation using the DJI Phantom 3 drone as a case study.