Copy of what’s believed to be Hunter Biden’s laptop data turned over by repair shop to FBI showed no tampering, analysis says
According to CBS News’ independent review, data from a laptop claimed to have been left by Hunter Biden in 2019, and later given to the FBI by the shop owner under subpoena, there is no evidence of tampering.
Brian Della Rocca was the shop’s lawyer and provided CBS News with what he described as an “exact copy”, of laptop data that had been provided to federal investigators almost three years ago. Della Rocca stated that he considered it clean because it predates the versions circulated by Republican operatives in order to attack Joe Biden before 2020.
Two cyber investigators from Minneapolis’ Computer Forensics Services performed an independent analysis and found no evidence of user data manipulation, fabrication, or manipulation. It also did not find any files that were created after April 2019, when Biden indicated in store records that he had dropped it off to repair.
Because the laptop data and bank records are at the heart of the Republican-led House investigation into Biden’s family businesses, this digital forensic analysis was done.
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According to reports from other media outlets including The Washington Post, some other versions of the laptop data circulated after April 2019 appeared to have data added, which could indicate that they were tampered with.
An attorney for Hunter Biden stated that “there have been multiple attempts hack, infect and distort Mr. Biden’s devices and data.” Christopher Clark, the attorney for Hunter Biden, said that his team believes there are ongoing efforts to use infected and corrupt data to spread disinformation. No one…had Mr. Biden’s permission to access his computer data, or share it with anyone else.
Clark’s statement didn’t address any questions about the data, documents, and personal identification that were analyzed in CBS News’ independent review or Computer Forensics Services findings. Clark also referred CBS and Hunter Biden to Clark’s memoir.
Two years of careful examination of the laptop have produced mountains of information about Hunter Biden’s personal life and foreign business ventures with China and Ukraine. The laptop has not provided any evidence that President Biden received benefits from the business dealings of his son.
“There is a lot of personal data that has been accumulated over the years. All data, from photos to personal documents to photos, text messages and emails. It would be impossible to make it up just from the volume of the information we are dealing with,” stated Sean Lanterman, incident response director at the company.
Lanterman stated that the data was accumulated over time in an “inconsistent, everyday use” of a computer.
According to the audit, the daily use of the laptop seems to have stopped abruptly in March 2019. This was just a few weeks after the laptop was damaged by liquid.
More than 120,000 emails were found, along with approximately 30,000 text messages. There was also video and pictures of the personal forms of identification as well as voicemails that were derived from user profile data.
Mark Lanterman (CTO Computer Forensics Services) stated that he believes the data was created and maintained by Hunter Biden.
He stated, “I have no doubt that this data was created and controlled by Hunter Biden.”
The audit not only examined the records for possible anomalies but also found multiple voicemails that could have been left by President Biden.
“It’s Dad. I called to let you know how much I love you. You are my best friend. In one message, Mr. Biden said, “You gotta get help, you gotta get help,” referring to Hunter Biden’s struggle with drug addiction. “I don’t know what I should do. I’m sure you don’t, but I’m here for you no matter what, no matter your need. I love you.
If Republicans win the U.S. House of Representatives majority in January, they will focus their investigation powers on Hunter Biden’s business deals. In a letter to the attorney General, FBI director, and Delaware U.S. Attorney last month, Republican Senator Chuck Grassley claimed that Hunter Biden’s brother James and his associates “profited” from a $5m wire from a company linked to CEFC (the Chinese Energy company) in August 2017.
Republican lawmakers pointed out a May 2017 email that will be the heart of their congressional investigation.
The subject line of the email is “Expectations” and describes a “provisional Agreement” for equity in a deal with Chinese energy companies.
Tony Bobulinski and Hunter’s ex-business partners were among those who received the email. They told CBS News that the number “10 held for H by the big guy?” refers to 10% Hunter holds for his father.
The email was made public in 2020 by James Gilliar. Gilliar told the Wall Street Journal Joe Biden wasn’t involved. CBS News has not received a response from Gilliar to their questions.
Bobulinski was in a tumultuous relationship with Hunter Biden and has been critical of both the president and his son. After initial reports by the New York Post regarding the laptop, Bobulinski appeared on Fox News and gave an interview. Although Republicans, including President Donald Trump and his allies Rudy Giuliani, praised the newspaper’s reporting at the time, Joe Biden, then-candidate, called it disinformation and a “Russian-plant”.
He also stated that he had “never spoken with my son about his overseas business dealings.”
The White House refused to comment on Bobulinski’s claims and the contents of his computer.
Doug Heye, Republican strategist, stated that “they’re going to examine every part of Joe Biden’s administration.” “A lot of this will also be aggressive on Hunter specific. We will hear lots about the laptop.”
Heye stated that he expected Congressional investigations to focus on “Who profited?” Did the law get broken? Did it not? Did there have to be serious national security concerns?
Heye stated, “And then there is the political. You can never truly separate the two.” “If there is dirt, it will make him dirty. These attacks could backfire if they are not.
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