Electronic discovery services what is it all about The way we access, modify or append electrically stored information is known Electronic discovery services or e-discovery services. It is the method of choice today. Electronically stored information is any data that is available in a digitized form. So it can mean anything from your email account’s password to your latest Facebook post. It is all the data that is available about you on the internet or the web. People around the world have started gaining more and more access to the internet and this is increasing their online footprint. But it is not just about what you put online voluntarily that is electronic data. It does include the details about you which HR department of your company has on you as an employee. Simply put, if your data is digitized, you are easier to get hold of, literally. What is the relevance of Electronic discovery services? They are mostly used in cases of litigation support, lawyers and attorneys. They have simplified their workflow to a great deal. Electrnoics discovery services – what does it have There are 3 parts with the help of which Electronics discovery services can be explained. 1. Data processing:Online data is in the form of videos, audios, emails, text, websites, blogs etc. To process this data at real – time speed is the reason why Electronic discovery services are required. It also includes scanning of documents. 2. Data collection and data preservation:The online footprint of the people that you will engage with in litigation or court, the collection of their data is done by using electronic discovery services. Storage and use of data is known as data preservation. Data identification is also a part of this. Sorting of useful data from the entire lot. 3. Data analysis and filtering: Similar to data identification except the fact that data which is already been segregated is also analyzed to keep in mind the end result. How do I find the best vendor for electronic discovery services? There are a few tried and tested ways to go about this. Search and google it for electronic discovery services. Then move ahead to the vendor of your choice as many companies offer these services and have a user friendly site and even the numbers of customer care are available. Next step to be followed is to ask around. It is ok if you have not google out the information about it, you can always always ask people who use these services frequently. First hand review is always useful and reliable. If you are a regular around litigation firms ask your contacts for references to an electronic discovery service provider. Once you have shortlisted few that fulfils your requirement then the next step will be the take a thorough look of their websites. The cost as well as the services they provide, this information is easily available online. Whichever firm you select, please check for the following information. 1. Confidentiality clauses in the agreement, since this data may be of very sensitive nature. 2. What technology and technical prowess they have at their disposal. 3. The amount of time that they as consultants spend with you, if too much is wasted on frills and formalities on your first meeting, keep in mind that you will be paying for it the next time around. This guide to electronic discovery will help you ease out your work to a considerable extent.