How to support early case assessment in eDiscovery with digital forensics
Early case assessment (ECA) is a critical first step in the eDiscovery process, one that directly influences cost, efficiency, and legal strategy. By conducting effective scoping at the outset, identifying which custodians, data sources, and timeframes are most relevant, organizations can reduce the volume of data collected, clarify legal exposure, and make informed decisions about whether to settle, negotiate, or proceed with litigation.
Traditional early case assessment scoping often focuses on readily accessible sources such as inboxes, file shares, or cloud accounts. While this approach can reveal important information, it may miss critical evidence stored in deleted files, system logs, shadow copies, or mobile applications. These overlooked areas can be pivotal in high stakes matters such as IP theft or insider threat investigations.
Integrating digital forensics into the early case assessment scoping process closes these gaps by:
- Recovering deleted or hidden data that standard collection methods overlook
- Reconstruct accurate, defensible timelines through analysis of metadata and system logs
- Preserve volatile data such as RAM, active sessions, and system caches before it is lost
- Avoid over-collection and reduce review burden by targeting specific categories or artifacts
- Maintaining a defensible chain of custody for every piece of evidence collected
By combining precise eDiscovery scoping with the investigative depth of digital forensics, legal and investigative teams can develop a more complete and defensible dataset, ensuring critical evidence is preserved and available for early strategic decision-making.
What digital forensics is, and is not
Digital forensic tools do not manage the overall early case assessment workflow, determine case strategy, or replace the role of legal counsel. They also do not send or manage legal hold notices. Instead, they support these processes by ensuring data collections are complete, forensically sound, and capable of revealing hidden, deleted, or system-level artifacts that traditional approaches may miss.
Relying solely on surface-level data collections can increase the risk of incomplete evidence and missed opportunities in the early stages of a case.
Core objectives of early case assessment
- Clarify legal issues: Identify the central legal questions and the data sources most likely to hold relevant evidence
- Assess liability and risk: Determine potential legal exposure based on initial findings
- Estimate costs: Forecast the resource and financial implications of discovery, review, and production
- Inform strategy: Decide whether to settle, negotiate, or proceed based on early insights
How digital forensics enhances early case assessment
Digital forensics adds investigative rigor to the early case assessment process by uncovering evidence from locations and formats not typically accessible to standard eDiscovery tools, including:
- Deleted files and folders
- System metadata showing creation, modification, and deletion events
- Windows Registry entries, application logs, and USB device histories
- Shadow copies, snapshots, and recovered prior versions of files
- Network connection histories showing remote access or file transfer activity
- Artifacts of anti-forensic behavior such as wiping or encryption
- Mobile device full file system data, including app-specific logs and deleted messages
This expanded scope allows legal teams to assess the full breadth of available evidence early, strengthening decisions around case strategy and proportionality.
Leveraging Magnet Forensics tools for early case assessment
Modern forensics tools, such as Magnet Axiom Cyber, Magnet Nexus, Magnet Review and Magnet Verakey have revolutionized the ECA process. These tools provide scalable, efficient, and targeted capabilities for remote data collection and analysis. .
When implemented across an organization, these solutions are ready to use at a moment’s notice. This eliminates waiting for IT support to initiate data collections, allowing investigations to begin immediately when an ECA is triggered.
Our solutions offer the following capabilities that align with ECA objectives
- Targeted remote endpoint collection: Collect data from a global network of endpoints with Axiom Cyber, including computer, cloud, and mobile data sources, without the need for physical access.
- Control what you collect: Axiom Cyber provides a high degree of control when collecting data and artifacts, so data can be culled to only include privileged information.
- Real-time analysis: Quickly surface relevant information and potential risks from collected data, enabling informed decision-making early in the process.
- Scalability: Nexus supports simultaneous collections and processing from multiple endpoints to meet the needs of large or complex matters.
- Flexible export options: Export preserved and processed data via RSMF or industry-standard load files, making it easy to import into your preferred eDiscovery review platform.
By incorporating these capabilities into the ECA workflow, organizations can collect and preserve critical evidence quickly, then leverage best-in-class eDiscovery review platforms for deeper analysis, advanced search, and AI-powered insights—without sacrificing defensibility or speed.
IDC 2022 MarketScape Report:
“Magnet Axiom Cyber is an excellent tool to collect from computer, cloud, and mobile data sources—especially for DFIR teams responsible for supporting eDiscovery. Axiom Cyber also provides a high degree of control when collecting data and artifacts. This means data can be culled to only include privileged information, minimizing the need to go through a potentially time-consuming and expensive redaction process.” To learn more about Magnet Forensics’ recognized leadership in eDiscovery, see our inclusion as a Major Player in IDC’s 2022 MarketScape here.
Use case: Insider threat and IP theft
A senior engineer at a technology firm resigns unexpectedly to join a competitor. Legal suspects proprietary source code and design files were copied in the weeks leading up to the departure.
How digital forensics supports ECA
- Targeted remote collection: Magnet Nexus captures endpoint data, both user-visible files and hidden artifacts, without physically seizing the device.
- Artifact-level acquisition: Magnet Axiom Cyber reveals USB device usage, recent file access activity, and cloud sync history to unauthorized accounts.
- Deleted file recovery: Surfaces erased versions of key design documents, indicating possible intent to conceal actions.
- Timeline reconstruction: Correlates system events, logins, and network activity to show when and how the files were copied.
- Category-based collection: Magnet Verakey on the employee’s mobile device captures only relevant communications related to the suspected transfer, avoiding unnecessary over-collection.
By applying digital forensics early in the process, the organization can confirm or refute suspicions of theft before engaging in costly, full-scale discovery while preserving evidence in a manner that will hold up in court if litigation follows.
Why this matters
No matter how an eDiscovery process is initiated—through a litigation hold, regulatory inquiry, subpoena, internal investigation, DSAR, or corporate transaction—the ability to perform timely, targeted, and forensically sound collections is critical to the success of the ECA phase. Digital forensics ensures these collections capture the complete evidentiary picture while maintaining defensibility and controlling costs.
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