Complaints

This profile includes complaints for Digital Forensics Corp.'s headquarters and its corporate-owned locations. To view all corporate locations, see Find Local Branches.

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• 

  Digital Forensics Corp.

  4400 Renaissance Pkwy Warrensville Heights, OH 44128-5794

• 

  Digital Forensics Corp.

  6272 Mayfield Road Cleveland, OH 44124

• 

  Digital Investigations Corp.

  5996 Centre Ave Pittsburgh, PA 15206

• 

  Digital Forensics Corp

  3107 S 3rd St Louisville, KY 40214

• 

  Digital Forensics Corp.

  5755 Granger Rd Ste 900 Seven Hills, OH 44131-1461

The complaint text that is displayed might not represent all complaints filed with BBB. Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:12/19/2022

  Type:Service or Repair Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  On december 12th I called DFC to assit in an extortion case. They proceeded to gather information about my personal life, what do i do for a living, am i a public figure in the comunity etc. all things that seemed harmless at the time. I then realized they would use this information to up sell me. which in the situation i didnt care i needed/wanted help with my situation and they were going to provide me with the service. This was obviously a very sensitive subject that i wanted resolved in a hastly manner. I sprung for their middle package which came to $7800 not cheap by anymeans. I was told to contact my case Rep with any questions and for Updates. After 4 calls on 4 seperate days with no return calls i was very nervous/anxious to say the least. I finallly recieved a call back today 12/19/22 and my service Rep was very rude, and rushed through the report. When asked about the comunication he said he couldn"t talk to me every 5 minutes, I didnt require costant comunication but a simple call back would have been nice. He said he has other customers and more or less it was my job to just wait for him. This was not the message when i was agreeing to Phase 1 services. He quickly and rudely moved into trying to get me to committ to phase 2. Which i do not know if i need because he would not talk to me like a human after i questioned him very politley about the lack of comunication during Phase 1. After reviewing their cancelation process I feel I was being strung along untill I was no longer elegible for any form of reimbursment. Even though i had no intent of canceling i belive this was the issue after reading others experiences.

  Business Response

  Date: 12/27/2022

  Hello,

   

    Thank you for bringing this to our attention and allowing us to come to an amicable resolution. We appreciate your business. We are currently under new management and are striving to resolve all matters internally as well as externally. 

• Initial Complaint

  Date:10/25/2022

  Type:Customer Service Issues
  Status:

  ResolvedMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  I purchased a service from this company for $1,500 that was supposed to begin today for an additional $500 and they failed to contact me today. ***** *****, the company rep assigned to my case is not returning my calls. I have contacted my credit card company to dispute the charges. Their "refund policy" is positioned to rip customers off.

  Business Response

  Date: 10/26/2022

  Hello,
  
  Thank you for taking the time to speak with us regarding this matter. Our records indicate that you attempted to contact our company outside of regular business hours and unfotunately we were unavailable to immediately assist you. It appears as though our Quality Assurance manager spoke with you today and was able to come to an amicable resolution. 
  
  

  Business Response

  Date: 11/08/2022

  Hello,
  
  Part of our internal process when a client files a chargeback with their financial institution is to send them a copy of the contract they signed to engage our services. Since you filed for two chargebacks, you likely received two envelopes. We apologize that the contents were only a blank piece of paper. We will send out the proper documents right away. We have already agreed to refund you in full as referenced by the Refund release form that you signed. Please also refer to our chargeback policy in our authorization form that you also signed. 

  Customer Answer

  Date: 11/11/2022

  [A default letter is provided here which indicates your acceptance of the business's response.  If you wish, you may update it before sending it.]
  
  
  
  Better Business Bureau:
  
  
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me. 
  
  
  
  Regards,
  
  
  
  ********* **********
  
  
  
  
  

• Initial Complaint

  Date:09/29/2022

  Type:Service or Repair Issues
  Status:

  ResolvedMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  In June 2022, I was in search of a digital forensics and cybersecurities specialist to remedy my hacking issues. I hired Digital Forensics on June 16, 2022 after speaking with ***** ******, a manager at Digital Forensics, to fully scan and assess my 7 electronic devices (1 PC laptop, 1 Internet router, 3 iPhones and 2 iPads). Digital Forensics assigned ***** ******* to be a direct consultant to work on each of my devices from June 16 through June 18th, 2022. ***** was given full remote access to my devices, including all passwords and setting administration functions within them, and she instructed me how to change out certain settings. She also installed monitoring apps such as Harmony Mobile Protect and ESET Endpoint Security. I was told my devices would be under 60 day monitoring and at the end, I would be given full reports on each device on the cyber activities and security levels.
  The promised services could not commence until I made payments to them. Thus, on June 16, 2022, I paid Digital Forensics $250 in credit card and also wire payment in the amount of $1,661 to their bank account. Both the credit card payment and bank wire payment were directed to 1st All Data Recovery LLC. When I was skeptical of the differences in the names between Digital Forensics and 1st All Data Recovery LLC, ***** ****** assured me that it was all the same company and it was legitimate.
  As of today, September 29, 2022, I have not received any reports or call backs from Digital Forensics regarding their assessment of my 7 electronic devices despite numerous attempts to connect with ***** and *****. Furthermore, the expired and deactivated ESET Endpoint Security application cannot be removed or updated from laptop.
  I would like to receive a full refund for the total payment I made to Digital Forensics in the amount of $1,924 which consist of the aforementioned charges on June 16, 2022 and also $13 charge on September 3, 2022 by them.

  Business Response

  Date: 10/06/2022

  Thank you for bringing this to our attention and allowing us to come to an amicable resolution. We appreciate your business.

  Customer Answer

  Date: 10/07/2022

  Better Business Bureau:
  
  
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and have determined that this does not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.
  
  Digital Forensics admitted their shortcomings on several accounts.  Thus, they agreed to refund me partial amount of the total payment I made, $1,211.  They said I should receive the payment by end of this week but I am notified that the check will not arrive until next week.  I would like to make sure I do receive this check and confirm that it clears when deposited to my bank account before the case to be closed.  Please let me follow up with you next week if the check payment is received and cleared.  Thank you.

  
  
  
  Regards,
  
  
  
  ***** ***
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
   

• Initial Complaint

  Date:09/21/2022

  Type:Customer Service Issues
  Status:

  ResolvedMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  On March 27, 2022 I engaged Digital Forensics by calling their office to enlist them to recover a failed hard-drive of data. The technician proceeded to start my case, sent me authorization forms for the services, and charged me an initial fee. In April, I was told it was taking longer than expected and they would prioritize and start the process for $199 which I paid. After hearing nothing for almost 2 months, I called, emailed, and texted my technician ****** ********* and after several days got a return call. She stated the recovery engineers have determined my data would cost $899 to recover, I told her there was no way I could pay that and asked if there was a cheaper alternative - she quoted me $476, to which I authorized and was told it would take 30 days to recover and send me a new drive with my data. I am now 6 months with attempting to get ANYONE at the company to respond and I've received nothing from them. A call to the number on their website resulted in someone picking up the phone, laughing, and hanging up. I've been ripped-off and abused by the lack of professionalism with this company. I am currently out $675.00 total with what seems to be a FAKE company out to rob people. Case # 386491.

  Business Response

  Date: 09/22/2022

  Hello, first and foremost, thank you for being a customer and bringing this to our attention. From our records, it indicates that you spoke with our quality assurance manager regarding your complaint and a resolution was found. We are very happy that we were able to recover your data, and now we will be able to deliver that work product to you.

  
  Thank you again for taking the time to speak with us, we are always open to feedback and love to make our customers happy. Moving forward, if you need any assistance with your data, please let us know, and we will gladly assist. If you have any further questions, please reach out to ************* ***** ****

  Customer Answer

  Date: 09/23/2022

  [A default letter is provided here which indicates your acceptance of the business's response.  If you wish, you may update it before sending it.]
  
  
  
  Better Business Bureau:
  
  
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me. 

  RECEIVED VIA EMAIL BY BBB STAFF MEMBER:

  The consumer has notified the BBB that the issue has been resolved by the business. 

• Initial Complaint

  Date:09/16/2022

  Type:Product Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  I signed a contract for services. I canceled teh contract on Saturday which was within 2 days, and I am entitled to half my money back. They contacted me on 9.4.22 saying they had finished the work and was not getting a refund. I spoke to Customer Service, who provieded a report. **** referred me to **** Dir of Customer Service. he sent me the report and went over it, and would not refund money but wanted to give me 6 months free phase two. I didn't want the service. I would like to be refunded $2999.50. I wired the money on 9.1.22. My case number with them is 437038.

  Business Response

  Date: 09/16/2022

  First and foremost, thank you for using our services for your forensic needs. From our records, you paid for service on 09/02/2022 08:32AM, and per your contract that is attached the refund policy is: 

  
  “I, ***** ******, understand that once payment has been submitted and Company has been engaged to perform services through this signed authorization agreement, any refunds or cancellation requests will be handled in the following fashion: 

  
  75% refund: cancellation request made within 1 day after contract signed 

  
  50% refund: cancellation request made within 2 days after contract signed 

  
  25% refund: cancellation request made within 3 days after contract signed 

  
  The Client understands that by three (3) days following contract execution, there will be no refunds provided because by this time the Company has already incurred significant expenses in the expectation of preparing to perform all necessary services under this Agreement. This includes without limitations, allocating resources to reserve necessary lab space for a given matter, retaining the services of expertly qualified engineers, utilizing specially manufactured products unique to a particular client's matter, and investing time to analyze the intricacies and strategies of a given matter. This list is not a complete or exhaustive list of all possible expenses incurred.”

  
  From our records, you purchased one of our premium services, where we start work immediately and attempt to finalize a report as soon as possible. According to our internal notes, your analyst completed your report on 09/02/2022 at 02:43PM. It was then reviewed by our quality control team and published for review on 09/03/2022 at 12:01PM. After this point, you requested a refund and to cancel the case. 

  
  From there you did speak with our Director of customer service who reviewed the case with you, explained that we had already performed all the work, and that your case was a tremendous success. In that conversation, you complimented how well we performed the service, and that you understood that we had performed the full service prior to the refund request. Even with our full service being performed and delivered, our Director offered you 6 months of free sextortion monitoring as an added bonus to your phase 1 service.

  
  A few days later you then emailed our Director again requesting a refund, he then explained that a refund was not possible as our company had already performed the exact service that was purchased before any refund request was made. We stand on this point that your service was fully provided prior to any refund request, and that we can not provide a refund for services that have already been performed and delivered based on simply a cancellation request. We have attached the phase 1 report along with the authorization to this response for full clarity.
  

  
  

  Customer Answer

  Date: 10/03/2022

  Better Business Bureau:
  
  
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and have determined that this does not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.

  I would like to point out some specific omissions that you made in your response as I deem them quite important to my ongoing frustration with DFC.  Before I do that, I think it is important to show how all of this came about. 

  When I first called DFC regarding the fact that I was being sextorted, I spoke to an Account Manager (RT).  I was reassured that everything would be handled professionally and timely under very stressful circumstances. I was EXTREMELY stressed and embarrassed.  I was told DFC deals with this all the time and has had great success etc etc.  I felt I had no other recourse so we proceeded with discussing the details of the transaction. 

  I was initially told the fees would be $1500 but that would just get me in a 21 day queue which made me ask what might happen in those 21 days?  Would something be posted in that timeframe?  How do you, or can you, stall a sextorter for 21 days?  I was told about how these sextorters are professionals with large networks so anything is possible and they have been known to post things anyway so there were not guarantees, but your program was generally successful and you have helped senators and athletes and other dignitaries.  I was given a link to watch a YouTube video for more info.

  I was then told that you had a program with a 7 day queue and that would be $5000.  Again for me, the same questions.  What is going to happen in those 7 days?  Then I was told there was a 3 day program that cost $7500.  When I voiced my hesitation with that amount of money, RT put me on hold, then came back and said "she talked to her manager and they would give me the 3 day program for $5999".  At that moment, I felt like I was being taken advantage of again since it was after 9 pm PST and after 12 pm EST.  Do you really have managers working that late? because I asked your account manager if she was in Ohio and she said yes and she is often up past 1 am working.  Ultimately, I did agree to the 3 day program (and paid in full prior to any work starting per DFC policy)  because I felt I had no other options and very likely was not thinking entirely clearly due to the stress at that moment.  I was on the phone with the account manager for well over 90 minutes as I signed the contracts and processed payment.  Fast forward to 9.3.22 at 1 pm PST when I requested a refund.

  So now I will go into the omissions and errors in your response.

  The funds came out of my account on 9.2.22 at 4:49 am PST (7:49 am EST) and according to your response, your team processed that at 8:32 am EST. This is certainly not a critical point overall, but your response is not completely accurate either and it lends to the difficulty I have encountered with DFC.  You state things as fact when they actually are not and you did not deliver as you said you would.

  I spoke with, then emailed, Mark T. the forensic analyst on 9.2.22 at 8:52 am PST (11:52 EST) as he started his processes.  I emailed him again later and he responded to me at 1:09 PST (4:09 EST). (This time is important because according to you he was done with his report almost an hour and a half earlier than that email response).  I was told that I would get an update by the end of the day Friday.  I heard nothing else from him or the account manager 0n 9.2.22 and the first half of 9.3.22,  so per the contract that you posted here, I requested a refund on 9.3.22 at 1 pm PST (4 pm EST).  I called your 1-800 number  and left a  message requesting a refund. I sent emails to the forensic analyst and account manager requesting a 50% refund which is within my rights per the contract.  

  You state "the report was completed on 9.2.22 at 2:43 pm and published for review on 9.3.22 at 12:01 pm". Who published it and where did they publish it? The first contact I had about anything was a text and VM from RT on 9.4.22 at 5:26 pm stating the report was finished and to call her back.  I called her and texted her on 9.4.22 but got no response. 

  I spoke with  RT on 9.5.22 and she told me the report was finished and it was "good news".  I said before I hear anything from the report, did you get my email and VM about my cancelation request? She said no and looked on her computer and said "Oh, I see it now"  Hmm, over 90 minutes on the phone with me coaching me on how to fill out the contracts and wire the money to DFC but didn't see her email or the phone call from me?  I told her I did not want any info from the report and wanted a 50% refund per the signed contract.  She referred me to customer service so I spoke with Joshua and told him I wanted a refund.  He told me what the report said even after I told him I didn't want to know what was in it and that I just wanted a refund.  He asked if the report had been sent to me via email.  I told him it had not and he was surprised.  He then referred me to the Director of Customer Service (PB) who I also told I didn't want to hear the report but stated the previous customer service rep had already shared some of the details with me.

  PB and I went over the report together.  PB said the report was finished before I requested the refund.  The problem is I did not get the report UNTIL 9.8.22 when the he emailed it to me.  So when you respond to me saying "that we can not provide a refund for services that have already been
  performed and DELIVERED" that is where you have a huge problem.  You DID NOT DELIVER ANYTHING TO ME BEFORE I REQUESTED A REFUND.  I acknowledge work was done BUT IT WAS NOT DELIVERED as you say. If it was done on 9.3.22 at 12:01 as you say, then you should have told me then.  Somebody reviewed the report at that time and it should have been delivered.

  You clearly see the problem here and your solution is to give me 6 months of Phase II for free (of which I have received a text and 4 email reminders over 6 days to sign the contract, very efficient now!), a value of $2800.  Phase II is an OPTIONAL phase and I find it quite ironic that that amount is really close to a 50% refund.  So what your saying is you will do 6 MONTHS of FREE work when the initial work took all of 4-6 hours maximum (look at the timing on the report as the FA interacted with the perpetrator from 11:37 am to 12:35 pm and his report was done at 2:43 pm on 9.2.22). 

  And lastly, when I requested my refund again from PB his email back to me included this " Our refund policy is for situations where work
  has not started, nor any work product produced."  Wait a minute, not started or ANY work product produced?  Do you tell that to your customers BEFORE they purchase your services? You certainly didn't tell that to me. It mentions nothing about that in the contract.  Maybe you need to amend your contract if that is the case?   Or maybe you need to follow through and deliver the product as you stated and if not then honor the contract you created.

  Either way, I want my 50% refund as requested.

   

   

   

   

  
  
  
  [To assist us in bringing this matter to a close, we would like to know your view on the matter.]
  
  
  
  Regards,
  
  
  
  ***** ******
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
   

  Business Response

  Date: 10/06/2022

  From our records our analyst reached out to you on 09/02/2022 at 11:36 AM (EST). You connected on 09/02/2022 at 12:24 PM (EST) in which case our analyst took over your accounts as discussed in the phone conversation and began communication with the suspect immediately. Our analyst worked through the night on your case because you purchased a premium service. We uploaded the physical report on 09/03/2022 at 12:02 PM (EST) thus completing the work within the specified timeframe per the contract. Per page 2 of our contract in the section labelled "Services Quote and Options" it states.
  " Because each individual matter and the various devices/electronic systems presented for services may
  pose unique or unforeseen circumstances, it is the Company policy not to guarantee that services requested will be completed on a date
  certain. The turnaround time provided to the Client is based on good faith estimates as to the hourly allocation necessary to complete
  services based upon previous experiences in handling similar matters. However, the Company cannot know in advance certain factors
  such as the amount of data contained on devices, whether the operating system or hardware is outdated, the presence of malicious
  software, damaged or corrupt files, which all may contribute to delays (this list is not meant to be exhaustive as there are numerous
  unforeseen circumstances that can arise) Therefore, the Company makes no representations or guarantees for an exact turnaround time
  of services. The Client always has the option to request that Company provide expedited services, in which case Company will devote all
  necessary resources to accomplish services in preferential fashion over other pending matters"
  We were able to complete the work within 24 hours and we were able to achieve successful results. Our director of customer service offered 6 months of free phase 2 service as an additional bonus to add onto our phase 1 service. We are able to offer you 12 months of Phase 2 free of cost for the inconvenience.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:09/02/2022

  Type:Customer Service Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  I had a severe issue with two of my cell phones being hacked/compromised so I contacted DFC and was told that they would "clone" my devices and provide a detailed report regarding the issues and details of my compromised devices and help to remediate the problem. I was told by my case manager that the charge of $916.00 I would receive a two step process the first being "evaluation" and the 2nd being "remediation" and be provided a detailed report explaining the issues of the compromised devices. He said I would need to wire the money in a bank transfer so the "hackers" wouldn't take the money. Later the case manager called me and wanted another $250.00 for me to receive the report within 5 days of his phone call instead of having to wait for 60 days to get the report. When I got the report it had zero details about the compromised phone although there is a TON of pure evidence in both of my devices clearly showing these phone being compromised the report mentioned none of it. THE CASE MANAGER TOLD ME THEN THAT if I wanted more detail I would have to give them over $1000.00 more dollars even though he had sold this to me originally as all-inclusive in what I had already paid him up front. This is clearly a scam and I am requesting a full refund as nothing was delivered as I was told from case manager of this service. It's bad enough to be going through identity theft crisis and hacked devices and now I've been scammed by these people taking advantage of my desperate situation.

  Business Response

  Date: 09/06/2022

  First and foremost, thank you for working with our company for your forensic needs. We have conducted an in-depth review of the facts of your case and have concluded the following:  On the first call your case manager talked about Phase 1 and Phase 2 multiple times and described in detail the difference, please review the audio recording attached. Additionally, your case manager went over a voice authorization with in which you were again asked to confirm you understood the difference between Phase 1 and 2. In that recording you admitted that you were confused, but now understood, and no grievance was made at that time, please see review the audio recording attached. In the Phase 1 authorization form there is a full section dedicated to explaining the difference between Phase 1 and Phase 2, and you signed that document stating you understood.
  As for the Phase 1 report, it is exactly as your case manager described. You received a 71-page forensic overview of settings, scans, potential malicious content. On page 65 of the report, our examiner noted that neither device had any trace of malware. On page 71 our examiner noted, “Due to the inherent case sensitivity and obvious complexities of each Client’s situation, our engineers are limited in their ability to conclusively determine the relevance of the extracted data for each specific case. That being said, the Phase II: Examination Report referenced above would provide the Client with the complete contents of all extracted data on a cloud-based interactive drive in a user-friendly, searchable format so the Client may directly review the evidence to determine the importance of any particular artifact.” This states that we recommend phase 2, but we explain that it is based client’s determination on the importance of the data. Please see documents attached.
  The issues described in this complaint were never provided to us at any point of the service, and our company has established a high level of transparency when explaining the Phase 1 and Phase 2 process.