Authenticity in Electronic Archives : Securing Digital Records

Abstrakt   Den snabba tekniska utvecklingen har lett till ökad produktion av digitala handlingar/records och transaktioner. Inom e-arkivens domäner, har detta medfört ett ökat tryck på det tekniska området för att kunna garantera autenticitet av bevarad information över tid.          Tidsstämplingstekniker är ett sätt att säkerställa digital information för en särskild tidpunkt och kan användas för att garantera autenticitet av digital information över tid. Denna magisteruppsats undersöker funktionen tidsstämpling inom e-arkivens domäner genom en kvalitativ metod med fem semistrukturerade intervjuer av fem svenska organisationer. I undersökningen ingår också en fallstudie av det svenska innovationsföretaget Enigio Time AB för att ge en förståelse av tidsstämplingstekniker och av deras tjänst time:stamp. Den teoretiska utgångspunkten i denna magisteruppsats är records continuum model med dels dess syn på kontinuitet i handlingar/records och dels dess belysande av skapelseögonblicket av handlingar/records. Den internationella standarden OAIS (Open Archival Information System) används för att hantera digital information och är, i denna uppsats, använd för att analysera hanteringen i dokumenthanteringssystem inom de fem organisationerna.                       Resultaten visar att denna snabba tekniska utveckling har komplicerat dels hanteringen i att säkerställa att digitala handlingar/records inte kan bli manipulerade eller ändrade och dels för att fortsatt kunna garantera autenticitet i ett långtidsperspektiv.                       Undersökningen visar även att organisationerna kan garantera att det bevarade materialet inte kommer att ändras när det väl är inne i arkivet men dess autenticitet, innan de kommer innanför arkivens trösklar, kan aldrig bekräftas. I och med att den moderna tiden producerar och bevarar enorma mängder data så bör detta starta med skapelsen av ett digitalt record tillsammans med bättre strukturerad metadatascheman som är säkrade i tid.Abstract   The rapid ongoing technical development has led to increased production of digital records and transactions. In the domain of electronic archives, this has put pressure on the technical area in order to guarantee authenticity of preserved information over time. Time stamping techniques are one way to secure digital information at a certain point in time and can be employed to guarantee authenticity of digital information over time. This study examines the function of time stamping within the domain of electronic archives and is conducted with a qualitative method using semi-structured interviews on five Swedish organisations. The study is complemented with a case-study of the Swedish innovation company Enigio Time AB in order to gain understanding in time stamping techniques and their service time:stamp.                       The theoretical framework in this study is the records continuum model with the view of the continuity in records and its illumination of the point of creation. The international standard OAIS (Open Archival Information System) is used by several electronic models to manage digital information and is, in this study, used to analyse the management in record keeping within the five organisations.                       The conclusion is that this rapid technological development has complicated the management of secure digital records from manipulation and guaranteeing the authenticity in a long term perspective.                       The study further shows that organisations may guarantee that records will not change once they are received into the archive but the authenticity of them, before they were delivered, can never be confirmed. Since the modern information era produces and preserves enormous amounts of data, this has to start with the creation of the digital record where better structured metadata schemes are secured in time.

Att bevara för att använda? : Om användares och användninges betydelse i arkivet

In times of increasing demands of access and use of records and archives, among the current political and private initiatives of both efficiency and innovation, and among developments of e-services and digitalization, new participatory initiatives are created. In the current times, as both users and potential users are gaining bigger roles as co-creators of records, it sets new demands on how these participatory perspectives could be contextualized in the archival practice. The aim of the thesis was to extend the knowledge of users, use of archives and archival records. Presented in the thesis, several studies have been conducted with the purpose of exploring how users and use are described in the literature of archival science, how use have been considered by different professions when analogue processes turn digital, and exploring what dictates the need of use. The studies have had a qualitative stance where the methods of data collection have consisted of interviews and a group interview, a focus group, a systematic literature review, and a participatory observation. The results show that the development of e-services is based on the need of the end-users/customers and that there is a risk that the role of the archival profession may disappear behind political incentives. Results also show that ‘user’ is a concept that is utterly bound to the heterogeneous contexts in which they are conceptualized, and that the user studies conducted within the archival domain elucidates the importance of gaining knowledge of the users’ perception and behavior. The thesis also shows that the concept of societal embeddedness as an analytical tool can be used to visualize the need of use of records. This can be used as a way to describe and contextualize the user perspective in a broader societal context.I en tid av ökande krav på tillgänglighet och användning av arkivinformation och arkiv, bland aktuella politiska och privata initiativ till både effektivisering och innovation, och bland e-tjänsteutveckling och digitalisering, så skapas nya deltagande initiativ för att möta dessa ökande krav. I en tid när användare och potentiella användare får en allt större roll som samskapande användare av arkivinformation så ställer det krav på hur deltagande och samskapande perspektiv kan kontextualiseras i arkivpraktiken. Syftet med avhandlingen har varit att fördjupa kunskapen om användare och användning av arkiv och arkivinformation. Genom avhandlingen presenteras forskningsfrågor som syftat till att undersöka hur användare och användning belyses i den arkivvetenskapliga litteraturen, hur användbarhet beaktats av olika professioner när analoga processer blir digitala, samt vad som bestämmer behovet av användning. Studierna har genomgående haft en kvalitativ ansats där datainsamlingsmetoderna bestått av intervjuer, gruppintervju, fokusgrupp, systematisk litteraturstudie, och deltagande observation. Resultaten visar på att e-tjänsteutveckling är baserat på slutanvändarens/kundens behov och att arkivprofessionen riskerar att försvinna bakom politiska drivkrafter. En användare är ett heterogent och ett ytterst kontextbundet begrepp och arkivanvändarstudier lyfter vikten av att erhålla en djupare kunskap om användaren, dess perception och beteende. Avhandlingen visar även att begreppet societal embeddedness som analytiskt verktyg kan användas för att synliggöra behov av användning av arkivinformation. Detta kan i sin tur användas som ett sätt att beskriva och kontextualisera användarperspektiv i en bredare samhällelig kontext

As money turns digital and trust turns algorithmic : what ought to be considered?

The aim of the paper is to raise questions and challenges regarding construction of trust in the global online context, using the rapidly growing use of digital currencies as an example of concern. The study raises questions related to cultural values and relations of power, and how that relates to trust, when money is digital and monetary processes are performed by technology. The paper is based on a qualitative study, using semi structured interviews with key personnel related to three different cryptocurrencies. Results indicate that cultural values affect how trust is constructed and perceived. Trust is placed primarily in technology and its algorithms, and is identified as an expression of a technocratic utopian approach, which might be in need of being balanced with accountability concerns. Instead of authoritative institutional processes with assigned roles and responsibilities, decentralized forms with users involvements and users control of their money, are important in establishing trust. Cultural influences from globalization and marketization affects how trust is created. The findings contributes by elucidating a need for further research if blockchain technology is to be used in a domain where requirements of trust, responsibilities and rights, long-term preservation, and long-term accessibility are of high concern

SLUTRAPPORT En effektiv digital informationshantering

En effektiv digital informationshanterin

SLUTRAPPORT En effektiv digital informationshantering

En effektiv digital informationshanterin

SLUTRAPPORT En effektiv digital informationshantering

En effektiv digital informationshanterin

6th International Conference The Future of Information Sciences INFuture2017: Integrating ICT in Society

This is the sixth publication in the series of biennial international conferences, The Future of Information Sciences (INFuture) organised by the Department of Information and Communication Sciences, Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, University of Zagreb. This year it is co-organised with the Miroslav Krleža Institute of Lexicography. The title of the conference is INFuture2017: Integrating ICT in Society. The conference explores the influence the information and communication sciences have on the society as a whole.This is the sixth publication in the series of biennial international conferences, The Future of Information Sciences (INFuture) organised by the Department of Information and Communication Sciences, Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, University of Zagreb. This year it is co-organised with the Miroslav Krleža Institute of Lexicography. The title of the conference is INFuture2017: Integrating ICT in Society. The conference explores the influence the information and communication sciences have on the society as a whole

6th International Conference The Future of Information Sciences INFuture2017: Integrating ICT in Society

This is the sixth publication in the series of biennial international conferences, The Future of Information Sciences (INFuture) organised by the Department of Information and Communication Sciences, Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, University of Zagreb. This year it is co-organised with the Miroslav Krleža Institute of Lexicography. The title of the conference is INFuture2017: Integrating ICT in Society. The conference explores the influence the information and communication sciences have on the society as a whole.This is the sixth publication in the series of biennial international conferences, The Future of Information Sciences (INFuture) organised by the Department of Information and Communication Sciences, Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, University of Zagreb. This year it is co-organised with the Miroslav Krleža Institute of Lexicography. The title of the conference is INFuture2017: Integrating ICT in Society. The conference explores the influence the information and communication sciences have on the society as a whole