America leads the world in information, and wealth in America is increasingly possessed by an emerging “information class.” This means that information workers who leave one company to join or start another can potentially present a threat to their former company by violating contractual covenants, civil statutes and even criminal laws by copying, deleting and/or destroying Company A’s valuable confidential information (CI). Since CI is usually sent from, received by and stored in computers, forensic examination of the digital devices used by the departing employee plays a central role in determining whether misconduct has occurred and proving it in court. In this month’s column, we will discuss the typical “triage” a departing employee’s work computer and other devices will undergo as part of the effort to assess whether that employee has improperly copied, deleted or destroyed CI.
Some Background and Assumptions
In the typical departing employee scenario, the former employer learns of the employee’s intent to depart when the employee announces his or her departure. The employer will then try to discern when the employee knew that he or she was going to leave and what the employee did thereafter regarding CI.
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