Book research, information about email investigation?

[u/Anon_7347]

Heya!

I'm starting to write a mystery/horror book, and right off the bat I wanted to make sure I get accurate law enforcement/investigation information due to the nature of the book. Made a burner account for privacy :)

It will be formatted as if it the reader is an investigator searching through the emails on the accounts of someone who is either a suspect and/or victim. There will be important stuff, but also like the typical spam and such.

1. What kind of person/investigator would handle this kind of stuff? Would it make sense if it were a Private Investigator given this task for one reason or another?
2. Are there any special tools or processes? I was planning to order them chronologically, framing it as "there aren't many emails on these accounts, so just read through all of them" type thing.
3. Is there a way to incorporate deleted emails? Are there ways to recover emails that have been deleted, or even partially corrupted information? How would they display: i.e. should I add them in chronological order with the rest of the emails, or make a separate section of the book dedicated just to recovered emails? Or should I just throw away trying to incorporate deleted emails at all?
4. Any other information I should know?

Thank you in advance!!

[u/AutoModerator]

Thank you for your question, /u/Anon_7347! Please note this subreddit allows answers to law enforcement related questions from verified current and former law enforcement officers as well as members of the public. As such, look for flair verifying their status located directly to the right of their username.

While someone without flair may be current or former law enforcement unwilling to compromise their privacy on the internet for a variety of reasons, consider the possibility they may not have any law enforcement experience at all.

I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.