Social Media and Recordkeeping Allegra Huxtable Manager Government Recordkeeping

Social Media and Recordkeeping
Allegra Huxtable
Manager Government Recordkeeping
Tasmanian Archive and Heritage Office
Overview
•What is Social media
•Social Media as a record
•How to capture social media records
•Legal risks
•Privacy
•Copyright
•Records Management Policy
What is Social Media?
Social media or Web 2.0 is any web-based environment
that allows users to easily create, publish and
share content.
The User is able to control the data, to create
modify, discuss an share internet content.
Its user centred interactive information sharing
design and collaboration.
Current Examples
Social Media – Web 2.0 applications
Social media with servers hosted by external
organisations:
• social networking sites including Facebook,
LinkedIn, MySpace, Google+, or Yammer
• video and photo sharing websites including Flickr,
Tumblr, Instagram, or YouTube
• corporate and personal blogs
• blogs hosted by media outlets - ‘have your say‘
feature on themercury.com.au
• micro-blogging including Twitter
• wikis and online collaborations including Wikipedia
• forums, discussion boards and groups including
Google groups, or Whirlpool
Current Examples - Social Media – Web 2.0 applications
•vod and podcasting
•online multiplayer gaming platforms including World of Warcraft, or
Second life
•instant messaging, including SMS
•geo-spatial tagging including Foursquare, Google maps, or Pinterest
Why are we using social Media?
Provides opportunities to:
•deliver services
•Consult
•Communicate
Social Media is:
•Cost –effective
•Instantaneous
•responsive
Does using social medial result in a state
record?
Yes!! When used to conduct government
business!!
Private Use is not a state records
Responses created by agency staff, as a part
of there work, such as a comment on a blog
post or a reply to a tweet, are state records
Monitoring Social Media
If a Tasmanian government action is initiated
from this monitoring then this social media
content should be captured as a state record
Is clicking ‘Like” a record?
If clicking like contributed to the receipt of a
complaint, the offer of a donation, or fed into
policy development it would result in a
record!
-Unlikely, but not impossible
Republished Information
Republished Tasmanian government agency
messages, issued by a non- Tasmanian
government agency are not public records
If Tasmanian government agency republishes a
message from elsewhere, this constitutes a
record
Copyright liability should be considered with retweeting
What should a record of social media
usage contain?
•The content (i.e., the information that is sent
or received)
•The format (text, visual, sound or video) of
the original content.
•Metadata:
• Who Sent it
• Date and time
• Messages sent - name and recipient
• Message received – recipient and sender
name
• Context – why, authorisation, purpose
• Social media used
How should the records be captured?
TAHO does not mandate any specific capture technology, as this
will change depending on the social media used.
• Screen shots to PDF and stored in your recordkeeping system
• New technologies are emerging – e.g. Hyper Alerts
When should a record be
captured?
At the time the social media
was used to send or receive the
information
Externally hosted social media
sites have no guarantee of longterm access
Legal Risks
Where are the records stored?
Does sending or storing information outside
of the state or country breach any laws,
legislation or standards?
Will the records be subject to legislation or
other requirements of the storage
jurisdiction?
Is there a likelihood of the evidential nature of
the records being compromised?
Privacy
Once a message is sent using social
media it may be irreversibly public.
The Personal Information Protection
Act does not cover content posted on
off shore sites
All agencies should have a statement
regarding data storage and privacy on
social media profile to indemnify the
agency against breaches of the PIP act
when collecting records of social media
Copyright
Some sites sate in their terms of usage that
content remains the intellectual property of
individual or entity that posts the content –
Facebook and Twitter
Other sites assert copyright over content
posted on their platform – need to verify
copyright remains with the crown
Training staff in recordkeeping
using social media tools
•Different communications tools carry
different levels of risk
•Develop and communicate social media policy
•Ensure staff understand that some records
are not suited to a social media environment
e.g. records with personal information
•social media usage policy states the purpose
of each application use for the agency
Incorporate the capture of social media records
into the Agencies Records Management Policy
•Assess you agency use
•Assess your level of risk
•Identify what records you need to make
•Assess your social media tools
•Work out your recordkeeping options
In Summary
Records resulting from social
media use must be captured in
a timely manner and preserve
the context in which the social
media usage was made.
Agencies need to:
•Review business and identify
risk
•Inform staff of obligations
•Provide training support and
standard methods for capture
Questions
GRK@education.tas.gov.au
Acknowledgements:
Sources consulted to develop this presentation
include:
• TAHO Guideline 18 Managing Web 2.0 Record
• State Records NSW Future Proof Blog –
Various Articles
• Public Records Office Of Victoria –
Recordkeeping Implications of Social Media http://prov.vic.gov.au/blog-news/recordkeepingand-social-media-use-a-policy-issues-paper-foryour-comment