Director - Dr. Cheryl Purdy, Davies County Sheriff Office

Dr. Cheryl Purdy is a digital forensics examiner/analyst with the Davies County Sheriff’s Office in Owensboro Kentucky. She holds several industry certifications in the field and has been with the department in this capacity for the past 13 years. Cheryl holds a PhD in Information Technology with a specialty in Digital Forensics, an MBA with concentration in Computer Information Systems, and a Bachelor of Science Degree in Mathematics. She has completed training from the National White Collar Crime Center, Secret Service’s National Computer Forensics Institute, Boston University Center for Cybercrime, Investigation, and Cybersecurity, and the American Academy of Applied Forensics. 

In addition to her position as a digital forensic analyst, Dr. Purdy teaches graduate level digital forensic courses for the University of the Cumberlands, Network Administration and Information Security for Western Kentucky University, and a workforce Cybersecurity course for the University of Louisville. She has recently returned from Iceland as a Fulbright Specialist working with the University of Akureyri in the development of cybersecurity curriculum for law enforcement. 

Dr. Purdy received the 2023 Sheriff’s Excellence Award outlining sentences of over 200 years in 5 major cases. She also received the 2021 National Sheriff’s Department Reserve Deputy of the year award, the 2021 New Beginnings (Sexual Assault Support Services) Voice for Change Award, and the 2021 Owensboro Noon Optimist Respect for Law Award.  In addition, she is a member of the Kentucky Office of Homeland Security Cyber Threats Working Group.

A few of the presentations she has given include The Evolution of Digital Forensic in Criminal Investigations and Digital Anatomy of a Homicide at the University of Akureyri; Digital Forensics and Information Security instructional materials to Kosovo Academy of Public Safety; and Ethics in the Field of Digital Forensics at Kentucky Prosecutors Conference.