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Electronic Records

Electronic records, like records in other formats, must be managed throughout their lifecycle. You can learn more in our publication, The Records Lifecycle.  Electronic Records must be organized, secure, and accessible. Legal retention periods must be applied, and the records securely disposed of once their retention period expires. However, the electronic medium poses challenges not found with other records formats.

Image. Man working at computer

Managing Electronic Records

You should maintain electronic records in their native format throughout their lifecycle. However, the nature of electronic records makes managing them difficult. There are a variety of electronic formats: email, voicemail, geographic information systems (GIS), webpages, word-processed documents, spreadsheets, databases, digital images, and video and audio files. There are a variety of storage types: remote web servers, in-house network servers, optical discs, magnetic tape, diskettes, or external and internal hard drives.

Inventory and Planning

A records inventory is the first step towards an electronic records management program. An inventory requires collecting relevant data on all your records, including electronic records systems, for analysis and planning.

For instructions on inventorying electronic records, see the State Archives’ Inventory webpage.

Organizing

Electronic records, like all records, must be well organized to be easily accessible. If possible, use a filing system that mirrors your paper filing system. Create a series of electronic folders and subfolders arranged from the general to the more specific with file naming conventions that that are logical, consistent, and allow sensible sorting.

A Content Management System (ECM) is an electronic repository that can organize and manage records of all formats. Records can be indexed for easy retrieval and the retention process automated.

Retention

The legal retention period for records is not determined by their format but by their function and their legal, administrative, and fiscal value. Local governments should use the LGS-1 retention schedule to identify the appropriate retention periods. State agencies should use the State General Schedule for records common to all agencies and work with the Archives to create agency-specific schedules for records unique to their agency.

For more information on the retention of records, see the publication, Retention and Disposition of Records.

Disposition

You should systematically dispose of electronic records. If the records are not confidential, you may simply delete them. Keep in mind deleted records can be undeleted and recovered. More secure methods for disposing of electronic records are

  • overwriting: You can purchase software to overwrite or wipe a hard drive. This will render the files unrecoverable.
  • degaussing: Waving a magnet over an electronic records storage device will scramble the data and make it unrecoverable
  • physical destruction: The most straight forward method is to destroy the storage media. Some shredders can shred CDs and hard drive can be removed and smashed with a hammer.

Preservation

Some electronic records must be retained long term, and this is the greatest challenge to managing electronic records. A migration plan is key to long term preservation and includes:

  • a refresh schedule for physical media such as tapes and disks which can develop read errors after a few years so are copied to new media (refreshed) every 3-5 years
  • a commitment to regularly upgrade hardware and software and migrate data to new systems to avoid the danger of data being trapped on an obsolete system
  • the use of standard or nonproprietary formats that do not change over time so are much easier to maintain. For example, PDF for word processed documents.

Security

Electronic records are under constant threat from cyber-attack such as hacking and malware like viruses and ransomware. To protect your electronic records,

  • keep virus software updated
  • create strong passwords and update them frequently
  • mandate staff regularly attend cyber security training
  • keep staff updated on recent phishing scams and other threats
  • create frequent backups and store them offsite

For more advice on securing your electronic records, refer to the Office of Information Technology Services’ Information Security Policy.

Don’t overlook the physical threats like fire, flood, vandalism, and hard drive crashes. You can increase the physical security of computers by locking doors and installing intruder, fire, and water detection systems.

For advice on preventing disasters and mitigating their effects see the State Archives Disaster Management webpage.

Publications

You can find more information about Electronic Records in the following publications:

Developing a Policy for Managing Email
Understanding the Importance of Managing Social Media Records
Using PDF/A as a Preservation Format

Workshops

You can find more information about Electronic Records in the following workshops:

Ask Us Anything About Electronic Storage
Developing a Policy for Managing Email
Developing an E-records Action Plan
Document Scanning Essentials
E-Records Storage Options and Overviews
Electronic Content Management Systems
Electronic Records Boot Camp
Electronic Records Bootcamp
Electronic Records Disaster Planning and Recovery
Electronic Records Inventory
Email Essentials
Email Essentials (Winter Webinar Series 2020)
Email Preservation and Transfer
Foundations of Email Management
Identifying Endangered Media Formats
Introduction to Electronic Records Management
Introduction to Information Technology for Records Managers
Introduction to Managing Audiovisual Records
Inventorying Your Electronic Records
Keeping Up With COVID-19 - Maintaining Your Pandemic Records
Managing Born Digital Records
Managing Electronic Records
Managing Email Effectively
Managing Social Media Records
More than CDs and Thumb Drives: Real Life Stories in the Adventures of Preserving Digital Records
Preservation Formats for Electronic Records
Preservation of Electronic Records
Preserving Electronic Records
Quality Control and Verification of Digital Imaging
Real Life ECMS Examples in Local Governments and State Agencies
Real Life Use of ECMS in Local Governments
Scanning Your Historical Photographs

Additional Resources

The State Archives has resources to help local governments and state agencies better manage their electronic records including advisory services, grant funding (for local governments), and training.

Staff are available to answer questions and will meet with you both virtually and in person to provide direct advice on better managing your electronic records. Local governments contact your Records Advisory Officer. State agency staff may contact the Scheduling and State Agency Services Unit. The State Archives administers the Local Government Records Management Improvement Fund (LGRMIF) to help local governments improve their records management programs. To learn more, contact your Records Advisory Officer.