Free Digital Forensics Tools & Guides

Here you will find practical, field-tested tools and guides built to support digital forensic work. From iOS backup normalization to VarInt decoding, these utilities help you work faster and more precisely. We update the collection regularly.
digital forensics free tools

Field-tested, free tools

free tool | backup 2fs

Backup 2FS. A free tool to recover and normalize files from iOS backups.

Backup 2FS is a free Windows tool that helps you recover and normalize files from iOS backups.

free tool | varint calculator

VarInt Calculator. A free tool for calculating and decoding VarInts.

A free utility designed to help forensic analysts interpret and work with variable-length integers (VarInts), commonly found in app databases, protobufs, and messaging data.

digital forensics free guides & e-books

Free guides & e-books

free guide

Forensic Guide to GPT Partitioning

This free guide provides a practical walkthrough of GPT-partitioned disks, covering the Protective MBR, GPT Header, and Partition Entry Array. It’s designed to help forensic professionals understand disk structures, recover data, and validate evidence.

free guide

How to decrypt Locked Apple Notes on iOS 16.x. A step-by-step Workflow.

This free guide provides a practical walkthrough for forensic analysts dealing with encrypted Apple Notes in iOS 16.x. It focuses on identifying and decrypting locked notes stored in the NoteStore.sqlite database extracted from iOS backups.

news and articles

Latest news and articles

Dive into our curated articles, case studies, and guides designed to empower forensic professionals with the latest techniques and industry developments.

Elusive Data expands training formats to make digital forensics training more accessible

Elusive Data expands training formats to make digital forensics training more accessible

Making digital forensics training more accessible Elusive Data was founded in early 2024 with a clear purpose: to make advanced digital forensics training more accessible, so investigators can gain critical skills faster, understand complex data, and move cases forward with confidence. Elusive Data was created to offer training that adapts to those realities.   Training […]

Elusive Data releases SQLiteVisualizer™ and redefines how investigators see and recover app data

Elusive Data releases SQLiteVisualizer™ and redefines how investigators see and recover app data

PRESS RELEASE Stockholm, Sweden – December 9, 2025 Elusive Data has officially released SQLiteVisualizer™, a next-generation forensicplatform that gives investigators unprecedented insight into how mobile applications store, modify,and delete data. Already used successfully in live investigations and refined through yearsof hands-on training, SQLiteVisualizer™ unifies visual exploration, decoding, SQL, hex analysis,and advanced deleted-data recovery into a […]

VarInt Calculator Now Available as an iOS App

VarInt Calculator Now Available as an iOS App

Small time-savers can make a big difference in mobile forensics.
That’s why VarInt Calculator is now available as a dedicated iOS app—bringing fast VarInt decoding and clear SQLite insights straight to your iPhone or iPad.

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