Yes, 1 is correct. The amount of deposited gold protected by the technology Depositing does not appear in the spy reports. The protected gold will be re-calculated, and the percentage protected gold granted by levels of this technology will apply on the amount of gold left in the deposit in case 2. Bonuses in 3 will grant 30% time reduction.
Please feel free to report the players you suspect at
support@imperialsupport.org so we could investigate their accounts. In some cases these investigations might take longer, but you will always receive the result by email once it is ready.