The Average Salary for Computer Forensic Jobs

Computer forensic analysts investigate cyber crimes and recover evidence from the Internet and computer hard drives. The annual income of a computer forensic analyst is highly dependent upon how much experience he has in the field, reports Payscale.com.

Entry Level

In July 2009, forensic computer analysts with less than 1 year of work experience earned a maximum salary of $51,168; those with 1 to 4 years of work experience earned between $40,911 and $71,157. The average salary range for computer forensic analysts with 5 to 9 years of experience was between $61,003 and $93,479 in July 2009 and between $65,000 and $110,723 for those with 10 or more years.

Employer Type

In July 2009, the highest paying employer of forensic computer analysts was the federal government, where workers earned an average between $50,000 and $92,752. The lowest paying employers were state governments, which paid salaries between $43,961 and $73,698.

Company Size

Forensic computer analysts who worked for companies with 20,000 to 49,999 employees earned the highest rates in July 2009 with a maximum salary of $134, 292. At a maximum salary of $113,466, employers with only 200 to 599 employees rank as the second highest paying, while companies with 1 to 9 employees paid the lowest rates with an average maximum salary of $58,958.

High Paying Areas

In July 2009, analysts who worked in the District of Columbia received the highest average annual pay range at $63,500 to $111,910. Other high paying areas were Illinois, California and Virginia.

Benefits

In July 2009, many computer forensic analysts received additional benefits that increased their overall compensation packages, including between 1.6 and 2.8 weeks of paid vacation time and annual bonuses of between $1,500 and $13,800.

References

• Forensic Computer Analysts
• Vacation Weeks
• Annual Bonuses

Resources

• Employer Type
• Company Size
• Geography