Electronic record keeping

Translation: Victoria Bakshina

Photo: skjalasafn.is

Electronic administration. This term is on everyone's lips as technology advances, but very few seem to realize what electronic administration embodies. For the majority, it means that they can file their tax declaration by just pushing a button, or having their driving license on their phone, but for the staff of public archives, electronic administration is one of the largest projects ever developed. It is responsible for the support and supervision of all administration and therefore, must be able to preserve long-term electronic data for electronic record keeping.. Not all agree on the merit of electronic record keeping, but rather look at it as a necessity or even a possible reform. The National Archives of Iceland are responsible for the strategic planning in record keeping, whether electronic or on paper, and so it's reasonable to start there if you want to learn about its innovations and methodology.

The beginning of long-term preservation of electronic data

It can be said that public electronic record keeping began in Iceland in 1997 when the Minister of Education, Björn Bjarnason, appointed a committee that was supposed to determine how one could preserve the public electronic records best. Immediately, decision makers had realized that the digital technological revolution was just starting and that the authorities needed to prepare for what was next to come. The committee, which consisted of the representatives of the Ministry of Education, State Economic Administration, National Archives of Iceland, Reykjavík City Archives and Statistics Iceland, delivered a report in July 1998, concluding that Iceland should be guided by the methodology of the National Archives of Denmark. The preparatory  work led to a signed treaty between Iceland and Denmark in 2005 that granted the National Archives of Iceland easy access to the regulations and software of the National Archives of Denmark. By 2010, the law and regulations of the National Archives were finally updated, so one could start the acquisition of electronic data. However, until then the staff of the Archives had adapted the Danish regulations to local circumstances, so that municipal archives could also start the retention of electronic data. The Reykjavík City Archives started receiving notifications of electronic records and databases in 2018.  Out of 36 notifications received, 15 have since been processed.

The effectuality of the long-term preservation of electronic data

From 2010, the National Archives have received about two terabytes of electronic data in 40-50 data submissions. It is, however, a minor part of data that is still kept in the state institutions and was supposed to be transferred to the National Archives for long-time preservation. Njörður Sigurðsson, Director of Acquisition and Access of the National Archives, explained that the main problem is that state employees are still printing out the data that is supposed to be transferred and preserved electronically. This causes the filing cabinets to fill-up and some data to go missing. Bjarki Valur Bjarnason, an IT Archivist at the National Archives of Iceland, says a considerable amount of money is spent to preserve everything on paper, but opinions are divided on whether it's more cost-effective to preserve the data this way or electronically. No one has calculated the exact cost of electronic record keeping, but it is safe to say that the capital cost is considerable. Njörður and Bjarki however, mention that the public sector has already taken the first steps in electronic record keeping by adopting electronic databases and record management systems into their operation. Bjarki hopes that as the technology develops it will be possible to keep the electronic cost down, but says that it is normal that the capital cost is higher whilst the new technology is being implemented.

The necessity of the long-term preservation of electronic data

It is doubtful that the preservation of electronic data retention on paper alone is a method that will be acceptable for a long time, as the world becomes increasingly more digital every day. It will be difficult to preserve data on paper only. In addition, storing data on paper l will lead to further data loss in the public sector, which is mostly electronic. It is not possible to preserve all electronic data on paper, for example, large electronic databases, sound files and videos must be stored digitally. That's why Njörður points out that paper record keeping is no longer an option. However, he also mentions that smaller municipal archives may experience difficulties in acquiring the expertise required in the field of electronic record keeping. One way to do so is to consolidate projects and have one or two central reception workshops that municipal archives could contact if needed. It is difficult to ensure the security of electronic data, so that it is neither altered nor stolen. The National Archives have tried to limit this risk by storing the data in  “information packages”, and having three versions of them, which are then stored in different buildings. The National Archives are therefore more than ready to receive the electronic data, but state institutions additionally need to follow the standards and rules that have been imposed. Njörður says that their inactivity may be explained by the fact that the state has not invested enough in the project.

The future of long-term preservation of electronic data

One may hope that the attitude of the City of Reykjavík will change since 10 billion ISK have been provided for digital advancement. Andrés Erlingsson, Head of the Consulting and Monitoring Department of the Reykjavík City Archives, says he hopes that in the future, the public can access data online through the electronic data systems within the administration system. Although presently many of the oldest documents of the City of Reykjavík are already available on the website of the City Archives. Therefore, the original papers will not be destroyed.. Most interviewees expressed that electronic records are either a dull necessity or an opportunity for progress. In addition, many  interviewees voiced a considerable lack of sufficient funding, facilities and independence of the public archives to fulfill their administrative and cultural functions.