What does Bin Laden's computer system contain?

US intelligence agencies are scouring computers and storage devices found at Bin Laden's stronghold. This is considered a 'gold mine' of data that can help expose the terrorist plot, location and funding of Al-Qaeda organization.

Data sources of about 5 computers, 10 hard drives and 100 storage devices were shipped after Bin Laden was killed in an American raid last Sunday.

John McLaughlin, former deputy director of the CIA, said, ' It would be surprising if this was not a' gold mine 'for us. These devices enable us to find reports about potential conspiracy as well as funding of this terrorist organization. '

US officials said a task force of experts from the central reporting agency, the national security agency, and the Justice Department, began to "scour" the source. However, it may take a long time to find all the information saved on it.

According to Attorney General Eric Holder, the government may add terrorist lists from finding Bin Laden's computer files.

The initial search will focus on the detection of threats posed by terrorists and information about Al-Qaeda 's attack targets. Computer experts will remove the hardware and be very careful with the traps that can cause data to be erased. They will then extract and copy all stored data, select from temporary files and try to unlock encrypted passwords, analysts said.

' They will implement each part and the first data layer can be done very quickly. Then there are additional classes that need deeper technical analysis to get information , 'said James Lewis, a former US State Department official specializing in security and technology work. He said that ' often it takes a long time to do this'.

" A careful search is unlikely to successfully exploit a great deal of information about Al-Qaeda, but instead of hundreds of thousands of small details it is possible to create a" big picture "for intelligence agencies " - one Research scientist at the Swedish defense research agency in Stockholm said. ' I don't think, they will find the address list. They can find code names and indirect references'.

Al-Qaeda 's stronghold does not have a phone or Internet connection, indicating that communications via a large number of DVDs and drives are found here. The US spy agency believes that, shortly after the attack on the United States on September 11, 2001, Bin Laden tried to evade US surveillance by relying on a CD-ROM transfer, instead of logging in. Computer network, Lewis said. But this probably caused him to be stuck with that tactic.