Leverage internal IT staff to easily identify responsive documents

Responding to a discovery request for electronic documents can be a complicated task. Ideally an organization would use their internal IT, staff but mistakes or oversights by personnel unfamiliar with specific litigation requirements can lead to unfavorable judgments or adverse inferences later on.

BitFlare enables an organization to leverage its internal IT staff to respond efficiently and confidently to a document request, reducing the need for an expensive computer expert. The free search and filtering capabilities allow relevant documents to be identified.

Once relevant documents are identified, a cost effective Evidence Discovery Pack (EDP) can be configured to automatically extract those documents along with a chain of custody and validation log. If necessary, SunBlock Systems can use these logs to provide independent verification that the searches were properly executed and the results are valid.

Reduce expert costs, get results faster, free up computer resources, and more...

Implementing preservation orders for computers can be time consuming and can tie up needed computing resources. Organizations may want to use their internal IT staff for such an effort, but management may fear that process mistakes or oversights could cause problems down the road. On the other hand, hiring a computer forensics expert to preserve all data sources can be cost prohibitive.

BitFlare enables an organization to leverage its internal IT staff to safely, securely, and expediently meet the demands of a preservation order while reducing the need for expensive experts. In fact, BitFlare generates forensically sound copies of computers and many servers free of charge.

The Preserve Drive feature produces a secured copy of computer hard drives along with an associated chain of custody and validation log. If further analysis is needed, these copies can be unlocked and processed by SunBlock Systems at an affordable cost. In addition, SunBlock Systems can use the chain of custody data to independently verify the integrity of the preserved evidence, giving it increased credibility in court. Data sources that are deemed irrelevant do not need to be processed, saving the time and expense of such efforts.

Quickly assess the extent of responsive data

Investigations often encompass many suspects and potential sources of information. Reviewing these sources can require large amounts of time and money. By quickly assessing and prioritizing the various information sources, BitFlare enables you speed up the investigation while reducing unnecessary costs.

BitFlare can be leveraged by anyone comfortable using a computer to quickly perform a forensic computer review onsite. The easy-to-use wizard interface automates the execution of common functions such as file and keyword searches. BitFlare's triage capability enables simultaneous reviews across as multiple computers.

BitFlare's searching capability is free and incurs no cost on nonresponsive computers. In fact, nonresponsive machines can be eliminated quickly from the scope of the investigation, saving the time and expense of their review. Relevant data from responsive machines can then be extracted by a BitFlare Evidence Discovery Pack, which can be purchased online.

Evidence Discovery Packs bring precision to fulfilling discovery requests

When opposing sides negotiate a discovery request, disagreements often arise regarding the implementation of such efforts. Whether it is agreeing to the tools to be used or to the parameters of the search, these issues can make the electronic discovery process unnecessarily long and complicated.

BitFlare extracts responsive documents for review according to the specifications of an Evidence Discovery Pack (EDP). An EDP is a combination of filters, such as keyword and file searches, that can be configured easily. An online catalog of preconfigured filters and searches is available on the BitFlare Web site for easy review, and custom searches and filters are simple to create. All parties involved can visit the site to review the possible options and agree to a specific set of filters in advance. BitFlare's automated software will save only data responsive to those agreed upon filters.

Obtain accurate, verifiable results from discovery requests

When the opposing side responds to an electronic discovery request, how can you be sure you are receiving a full production? Rather than wonder whether all documents were accounted for and if any data were altered prior to production, sometimes both sides retain computer experts to ensure the opposing expert is acting in good faith. This dramatically increases the cost and can lead to "dueling experts", leading to a scenario where nothing is accomplished.

BitFlare creates chain of custody and validation information for every file that is identified and extracted as specified by an Evidence Discovery Pack. This chain of custody information serves as an independently verifiable production log, accessible only by SunBlock Systems. These logs account for all documents and confirm their integrity, while allowing for documents withheld due to privilege. This ensures that discovery results are accurate and reduces the likelihood that an opposing side will successfully challenge the results. By specifying the use of BitFlare, you can rest assured that the discovery will be carried out by the opposing side in good faith.

Easily audit your machines with BitFlare

Periodic monitoring and review of computers can identify violations of your organization's acceptable use policy. Such violations can range from innocent to malicious actions. Pornography on a work machine may indicate behavior that will upset other employees and create a liability for your organization. A lost laptop containing unencrypted sensitive client information may damage relationships and open your organization up to legal action.

BitFlare can help you find violations that can undermine your organization's operations. Unlike traditional tools. BitFlare can help you identify data while preserving the integrity of the computer should there be a need for legal steps.

Your IT department can use BitFlare in a computer investigation to search the hard drive for specified compliance issues at no cost. If any evidence of wrongdoing is found, the user can preserve the drive on the spot or extract the relevant evidence using an Evidence Discovery Pack (EDP). By using consistently configured EDPs, your organization can review all machines in a consistent, unbiased manner at a fraction of the cost.

Proactive data preservation prevents loss of data for potential future legal action

Investigating an issue concerning an ex-employee can be a difficult proposition-whether it is initiating legal action against a former employee who is now disrupting your business activities or whether your organization needs to defend itself against a wrongful termination suit. Often a departed employee's computer has been repurposed and redistributed to another employee, obscuring or obliterating any potential evidence. Saving computers or hard drives for an indeterminate amount of time would be impractical and may put the value of any potential evidence into question if not properly secured.

Using BitFlare's free Preserve Drive feature, your organization can be prepared for such unanticipated litigation. The Preserve Drive feature produces a secured copy of a computer's hard drives with an associated chain of custody. An organization can manage these copies as ordinary data on general purpose media. If litigation does arise, these copies can be unlocked and processed by SunBlock Systems as part of a computer investigation. SunBlock Systems can review the contents of the computer as it existed in the past, giving you access to litigation-quality evidence.

Respond safely to matters in an unprecedented timeframe

The complicated nature of many internal incidents requires a timely computer investigation that still maintains an organization's ability to proceed with legal action if the need arises. Traditional software tools either require expensive licenses to be purchased or do not maintain the integrity of the evidence during the analysis.

BitFlare has a free distribution software license and can be obtained electronically within minutes, allowing for a rapid, cost effective response when an internal incident occurs. Anyone comfortable using a computer can obtain and use BitFlare to determine the extent of the issue through the various free search and filter capabilities. If relevant data are found, you can preserve the drive on the spot and extract the evidence at a fraction of the time and cost of retaining an expert to do so. All computer evidence and chain of custody logs are fully protected in the event that the evidence is needed in litigation.

Avoid evidence spoliation during an investigation

Due to their technology expertise, IT staff may be asked to handle electronic evidence relevant to impending or current litigation. However, computer forensics and the legal issues pertaining to the handling of electronic evidence are not part of the typical IT skill set. Some IT experts may not realize that simply booting up a computer modifies the metadata for thousands of files and can obliterate vital electronic evidence needed in future litigation.

Using BitFlare, an IT professional can avoid these issues easily when handling potential evidence. BitFlare can search and review data on a computer without altering the contents of the hard drive. The software can extract relevant documents, along with a chain of custody and validation log to help with their admissibility in court. If necessary, the entire hard drive can be preserved in the event the evidence becomes crucial at a later date.