What are the recommended forensic methods to detect tampering with the USN Journal?

Forensic investigators should first read and list all USN Journal records using tools like `fsutil usn enumdata` or specialized utilities such as ExtractUsnJrnl and UsnJrnl2Csv, then look for gaps or anomalies. However, because sophisticated attackers may modify the journal directly, additional cross‑checks like parsing $MFT records from memory with tools like MftCarver are recommended. These approaches are detailed in [Penetration Techniques - USN Journal of NTFS Files in Windows](/news/penetration-techniques-usn-journal-of-ntfs-files-in-windows).