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Preserving Digital Records: InterPARES Findings and Developments

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Abstract

The InterPARES (International Research on Permanent Authentic Records in Electronic Systems) project has been running consecutively for 12 years with an enduring research interest in the issues and challenges imposed by digital records as to their management and preservation. During the three phases that constitute the 12-year research period, the project developed theoretical and methodological knowledge at its first and second phases and applied the developments to practical settings at its third phase. This chapter presents the findings and products of the third phase and analyzes them in relation to preservation foundation, preservation mechanism, and preservation technological system. The analysis established that the situation of digital records preservation in the participating organizations is challenging due to weak or even lack of preservation foundation. It is believed that the analysis could shed light on future actions that financial regulators and market participants might take to ensure quality maintenance and long-term preservation of financial records.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    Defined in the InterPARES 2 Terminology Database as the “physical or juridical person who makes, receives or accumulates records by reason of its mandate/mission, functions or activities and who generates the highest-level aggregation in which the records belong (that is, the fonds).”

  2. 2.

    Defined as the “entity responsible for taking physical and legal custody of and preserving (i.e., protecting and ensuring continuous access to) authentic copies of a creator’s records.” (Adaptation of the definition in the InterPARES 2 Terminology Database).

  3. 3.

    Defined as the field responsible for the systematic design, implementation, maintenance and administrative control of a framework for the making and keeping of records to ensure efficiency and economy in their creation, use, handling, control, maintenance, and disposition.

  4. 4.

    Defined as the field responsible for the systematic design, implementation, maintenance, and administrative control of a framework for records appraisal, accession, processing, preservation, and access provision.

  5. 5.

    For the original and much more detailed introduction regarding diplomatic analysis, see Duranti (1998).

  6. 6.

    For a detailed introduction on the development of archival science, see Duranti (1996).

  7. 7.

    Defined as the “network of relationships that each record has with the records belonging to the same records aggregation.” See also Duranti (1997).

  8. 8.

    See InterPARES (2002a) Authenticity Task Force Report.

  9. 9.

    None of the phases intended exclusively to either develop theories or devise practical solutions. Both may be produced depending on the research environment and process. For example, the InterPARES 2 case study, VanMap, was completed with a practical solution for long-term preservation of the GIS system used by the organization as a record.

  10. 10.

    The information in brackets indicates the sources of input. The five conditions are refined for the purpose of this paper. For the complete template with sub-elements and definitions, see http://www.interpares.org/ip2/display_file.cfm?doc=ip2_book_appendix_07.pdf.

  11. 11.

    Defined as the physical or juridical person having the authority and capacity to issue the record or in whose name or by whose command the record has been issued.

  12. 12.

    Defined as the person having the authority and capacity to articulate the content of the record.

  13. 13.

    Defined as the person(s) to whom the record is directed or for whom the record is intended.

  14. 14.

    Defined as the person assigned or provided with the digital location where the record has been generated (adaptation of the definition in the InterPARES 2 Terminology Database).

  15. 15.

    Defined as the legal and regulatory environment in which the records creator operates (adaptation of the definition in the InterPARES 2Terminology Database).

  16. 16.

    Defined as the records creator, its mandate, structure, and functions.

  17. 17.

    Defined as the business procedures in the course of which records are created, used, and maintained (adaptation of the definition in the InterPARES 2 Terminology Database).

  18. 18.

    Defined as the characteristics of the hardware, software, and other components of the digital system(s) in which records are created, used, and maintained (adaptation of the definition in the InterPARES 2 Terminology Database).

  19. 19.

    For the complete model, see http://www.interpares.org/ip2/display_file.cfm?doc=ip2_book_appendix_14.pdf.

  20. 20.

    The inclusion of preservation metadata in the design of the technological system as opposed to, e.g., the design of preservation management framework, is due to the consideration that preservation metadata should be as much as possible handled automatically by the system.

  21. 21.

    The round of data collection refers to that conducted in a systematic manner. Non-systematic data collection took place constantly in the course of conducting the research, as dictated by the methodology. They include e-mail, phone, and workshop discussions.

  22. 22.

    One creating organization was in the process of implementing such a system, thus, the proposed research was considered one part of the preparatory work.

  23. 23.

    The establishment of individual or unit writer, unit or organizational author, etc., depends also on individual records.

  24. 24.

    In some cases, even the creator could not make sense of it after his or her memory had faded.

  25. 25.

    This is the main reason why “corporate knowledge” in the form of human memory is important to these organizations.

  26. 26.

    This is not to suggest that the development of the solutions did not consider other existing knowledge. The application of theories depends entirely on their pertinence to the solutions being developed, not to their sources.

  27. 27.

    See InterPARES (2002b) Appraisal Task Force Report.

  28. 28.

    See InterPARES 2 Terminology Database.

  29. 29.

    See InterPARES (2008) A Framework of Principles for the Development of Policies, Strategies and Standards for the Long-term Preservation of Digital Records.

  30. 30.

    See InterPARES (2007) Creator Guidelines—Making and Maintaining Digital Materials: Guidelines for Individuals.

  31. 31.

    See PREMIS Editorial committee (2008).

  32. 32.

    See McDonald (1995, 2005).

  33. 33.

    See National Archives and Records Administration (2010).

  34. 34.

    See Consultative Committee for Space Data Systems (2002).

  35. 35.

    See National Archives and Records Administration. Electronic Records Archives (2011).

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Correspondence to Sherry L. Xie .

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Xie, S.L. (2013). Preserving Digital Records: InterPARES Findings and Developments. In: Lemieux, V. (eds) Financial Analysis and Risk Management. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-32232-7_8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-32232-7_8

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