Core Competency H
Be conversant with current information technologies and best practices relating to records preservation and security.
“Institutions must lay the foundation for success… by creating the proper policies and procedures. If any of those elements are missing, the system no matter how well it is designed by technologists, is bound to fail.” (Bantin)
Introduction
Technology is simultaneously the cause of and the solution to records preservation and security issues. When the need for security and preservation was strictly limited to physical records, the requirements included secure access, protection against theft, environmental threat analysis and protection, and the establishing a form of backup system. Today, bit rot, hacking, and obsolescence of digital records joins the list of concerns that an archivist or records manager must consider in establishing effective digital preservation and security programs for records permanence. The advancement of technology in the creation of digital records or the digitization of records has become an integral piece to the security and preservation processes. Technologies such as key card access and entry codes exist to keep physical records secure, added to that is the establishment of technological security measures such as fire walls and passwords secure digital records. The interoperability between IT and RM, in combination with selection, maintenance, creation of linkages between records, and the application of metadata to both describe and secure information, digital preservation ensures perdurance of records.
Application and Experience
In March of 2013 I attended an archival security seminar held at the National Archives and Records Administration. Although it was not my first time, upon hearing about the thefts conducted by Barry Landau and Jason Savedoff, I was astounded by the fact they were able to go to multiple repositories with in place security policies and steal over 10,000 historical documents. During that same seminar, NARA security personnel also addressed instances of theft from within NARA itself including the theft of the Clinton hard drive and Movie Tone images of World War Two. Acknowledging their found weaknesses, NARA personnel detailed the security measures NARA has now implemented in order of to mitigate employee theft. If a repository as large and structured as the National Archives and Records Administration can become the victim of security breaches, the potential for smaller businesses, repositories or organizations to experience similar losses is that much greater.
It was the gaining of the understanding that external and internal risks are real and not just cautionary tales, that has had a profound influence on my approach to learning and suggestions in implementing information security measures. Within the MARA program I have garnered an interest in the preservation and security of records from the technological perspective, such as digital preservation, microfilming, and the application of metadata to records, as a means of preservation. It was the idea of digital preservation management being akin to a three-legged stool as was discussed in MARA 283 and the concept of one missing or inadequate leg making the entire structure unstable resonated that with me. If one considers that a successful Trusted Digital Repository is predicated on “international, cohesive framework of government policies and strategies addressing jurisdiction, security, privacy ad risk sharing” (Bantin, 2016), from a technological perspective, the need to define data ownership as well as the need for security, preservation, and effective metadata is key to stability.
Evidence
The first piece of evidence I have chosen to submit for this competency was completed for MARA 204. This was a SWOT analysis of the Monmouth County Archives in Monmouth County, New Jersey; I was fortunate enough to have the archivist allow me to interview him and be given a tour of the facility. Based on that tour and interview, as well as a drive around the area, I was able to create the attached SWOT analysis that I also sent along to the archivist for his input. While he gave the analysis a couple critiques, he was impressed with its construct. Having the opportunity to conduct a SWOT analysis allowed me to reinforce the learned ability to assess an organization or business’s internal and external environments, then based on that information, construct an analysis of their strengths and weaknesses. The SWOT analysis can then aid in the organization’s ability to recognize and exploit their strengths and simultaneously identify and mitigate their weaknesses.
The second submission is a strategic plan completed for MARA 284. I enjoyed working on the plan because it required me to look at the organization from multiple angles and come up with a plan addressing staffing needs, long term digital preservation, and defensible information policies. The key to this plan’s success was to develop a sustainable plan fitting the mission and vision of the organization, as well as incorporating any laws or policies governing digital preservation.
The third submission for this competency is a position paper completed for INFO 259. This position paper supports the statement that digitization is not the same as digital preservation, but rather is the process of securing records that have been digitally created. This discussion is important in that there is a misconception that the technology utilized in the capturing of digital information is sufficient to allow for its preservation and security.
Conclusion
AI and quantum computing look to be the next large-scale technological advances in the future. This means the preservation and security of information will have another dimension added to the already existing physical and digital records of today. It is understood that the development of new technologies will always come with the need for newer, more comprehensive and multilayered approaches to keep the information created and stored by that technology secure and accessible for future users.
Evidence
Core Comp H MARA 284 Strategic Plan (1) Evidence # 2-1
Core Comp H Environmental – Swot Survey Thomas Laurie E Evidence #1-1
A Storied Past 