Unified Risk List for Electronically Stored Information Subject to eDiscovery in Cloud Computing

Abstract

Electronic discovery is the process of production of electronically stored information (ESI) for use in legal court or corporate investigations. When eDiscovery is performed over a cloud service, the amount of risks to the process increase. Therefore, the purpose of the project is to define the risks affecting ESI residing in a cloud environment that are subject to eDiscovery. This project also seeks to state which risks have the most impact and which are more likely to occur, and provide recommendations to mitigate these risks. To achieve this, a list of risks was compiled from different sources and the risks related to eDiscovery were selected. The risks were evaluated using a qualitative risk analysis to determine likelihood and impact. Vulnerabilities and control recommendations were established for the compiled risks and conclusions were drawn. Control recommendations provide a perspective on areas that require attention for risk mitigation. Key Terms - Cloud Computing, Electronic Discovery, ESI, Risk Analysis.