E-discovery. What Is That?

Times have
changed; there have been a lot of progresses made in today's society. Now, cell phones are common place. Every home
has access to at least 1 computer. Technological savvy begins with kids at a much younger age than it did 25 years
ago. All of these changes have shaped the modern world that is today. With all the new ways to communicate, laws
have also changed to allow eDiscovery in litigations now.

eDiscovery is the entire process of searching,
locating, securing and investigating electronic data. It purpose of the investigation is to find evidence to use in
civil and criminal lawsuits. There are some cases that hacking is sanctioned by the government or various courts.
To investigate different computers, it's not just limited to 1 computer offline; an entire computer network can be
investigated.

With e discovery, there are all types of data that can be searched through for evidence. Technicians can sort
through text, images, databases, spreadsheets, audio and animation files, websites and a host of other information.
In some instances, malware can be searched and used as evidence too. Most people don't realize that it is very hard
to destroy digital data, in some cases almost impossible. The only absolute way to avoid detection with e discovery
is to completely destroy every hard drive the information has been saved to.

It is often forgotten that a deleted file can be retrieved. Although it is a time consuming process,
electronic communications can be traced and presented as evidence. Every computer has a unique ip address and that
is highly traceable for any reason. Many people that are fascinated with eDiscovery find there are opportunities to
follow that fascination into a new career.


A cyber forensic analyst performs one specialized form of eDiscovery. They investigate the hard drive of
the computer in question after it has been located. Although it is a tedious job, it can be very rewarding.

What has it changed?

With technology being as intertwined in today's society, FRCP's, Federal Rules
of Civil Procedure, rule 26(a) had to be changed. This change allowed for the admissibility of evidence that was
found with eDiscovery.

In some instances, the use of e discovery has exposed very large and critical pieces of evidence and other times,
it has done nothing except paint a very negative picture of one of the litigants. Although this is a time consuming
form of investigation, it is a method used by people engaged in all types of lawsuits.

Because the courts are allowing information to be used that is found via
eDiscovery, there are many voices that have been raised with concern. They are questioning if the investigations
are violating civil rights, privacy rights and even constitutional rights. Some say it's better to look than ignore
what could be detrimental in so many cases. Most people will agree that this is just one other facet of a
technology studded society.