Electronic discovery, more commonly referred to as eDiscovery, is the process of searching for and obtaining data that’s stored electronically. This includes emails, social media content, messages, and website searches. This is usually carried out as part of a litigation process that requires electronic data to be presented as evidence. However, eDiscovery software can also be useful in industries that handle a lot of data that must be retained for long periods, such as protected health information (PHI).
In the US, the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure (FRCP) require organizations to store and manage their data in a way that enables them to easily retrieve when necessary. Failure to comply can result in penalties such as a significant fine, so it’s in your business’ best interest to store data correctly. With the wrong eDiscovery solution, not only can searching be time-consuming, but the management of that database can be resource intensive.
eDiscovery software solutions help businesses to create a secure, tamper-proof archive of all their electronic data, with custom retention policies to help comply with data protection regulations such as HIPAA, GDPR, and PCI-DSS. They also provide granular search functionality that makes it easier for businesses to find specific data—such as evidence for a litigation case, or a patient’s medical history—and export that data.
In this article, we’ll explore the top eDiscovery software solutions. We’ll look at features such as data archiving, customizable retention periods, search capabilities, and auditing and reporting. We’ll give you some background information on the provider and the key features of each solution, as well as the type of customer that they are most suitable for.