Email
Electronic mail, or email, is the term used for communications that are sent or received via an electronic messaging system.
Email as Official Records
The National Archives of Australia publication, Managing Electronic Messages as Records (May 1997), establishes for the Commonwealth Government sector in Australia that:
"stored electronic messages derived from Commonwealth Government business transactions are records ... Electronic messages required as evidence of business activity should be captured directly into an electronic recordkeeping system. If this process can't be satisfied, recordkeeping functionality should be built into electronic messaging systems, or electronic messages with appropriate contextual detail should be printed and filed into paper-based recordkeeping systems."
To maintain their value as evidence, electronic messages as records must be inviolate, that is, not able to be altered or manipulated. Measures must be taken to ensure their authenticity.
The National Archives of Australia recommends that to deal with corporate email, corporate policies and guidelines should be established to cover:
- any legal or regulatory requirements;
- corporate information and recordkeeping policies and strategies;
- corporate ownership of the email system and the transactions which occur;
- conditions for private use;
- responsibility for capture and maintenance in recordkeeping systems;
- responsibility for determining the value and disposal of email; and
- security, access and other operational information.
Policies of this nature have been produced in other jurisdictions. Some are accessible through the PADI site.
Email as Personal Records
Much email is generated from personal computers at home. Such email is potentially part of the personal records of an individual or family, comparable to the letters and notes that form a considerable component of any manuscript collection. Whether or not long-term access to these records is preserved depends on the individual creator, or their family if the creator has died. Access to these records is more likely to be preserved if professionals (such as records managers, archivists and manuscript librarians) provide advice to the record creators about preserving access to their email.
Text last updated: Jul 2002
Acknowledgement
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Archival Management of Personal Records in Electronic Form: Some Suggestions
Cunningham, Adrian
(Date Created: May 1994)
(Australia)
- This article discusses the issues surrounding the keeping of electronic personal records and suggests strategies that could be adopted by personal records practitioners concerned with the management of these records (Archives and Manuscripts volume 22, no. 1, May 1994, pp. 94-105)
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Archiving E-mail
Boudrez, Filip; Van den Eynde, Sofie
(Date Created: Aug 2002)
- A report from the Flemish DAVID Project examining in detail the legal and technical issues related to the preservation of email records, including sections on email archiving policies and practice. The report is available in PDF format.
- http://www.expertisecentrumdavid.be/davidproject/teksten/Rapporten/Rep
ort4.pdf
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Collection-Based Persistent Digital Archives - Part 2
Baru, Chaitan; Gupta, Amarnath; Ludaescher, Bertram; Marciano, Richard; Moore, Reagan; Rajasekar, Arcot; San Diego Supercomputer Center; Schroeder, Wayne; Wan, Michael
In: D-Lib magazine
(Date Created: Apr 2000)
- This article, from the San Diego Supercomputer Center, describes a project to create a one million message persistent email collection. Following on from Part 1 , which describes the development of an environment that supports migration of collections onto new software systems, this article discusses the four parts of a persistent archive system: "support for ingestion, archival storage, information discovery, and presentation of the collection."
- http://www.dlib.org/dlib/april00/moore/04moore-pt2.html
- In D-Lib Magazine, Vol 6, No. 4
-

Coming to TERM : Designing the Texas Email Repository Model
Galloway, Patricia; Green, Marlan; Gunn, Stan; Soy, Sue
In: D-Lib magazine
(Date Created: Sep 2002)
(United States of America)
- This article describes an approach to the long term preservation of email within the Texas government.
The Texas Email Repository Model (TERM) is a highly regulated OAIS complaint model and its various functions are described in detail. They include ingest, storage, management, access, preservation and administration.
- http://www.dlib.org/dlib/september02/galloway/09galloway.html
- Curating E-mails
Pennock, Maureen
(Date Created: Feb 2006)
- In this briefing paper, one of a series to appear on the DCC site, the issues involved in managing and curating emails and offers some practical advice for successful curation of e-mail messages. There are also links to additional resources on the subject.
- http://www.dcc.ac.uk/resource/briefing-papers/curating-e-mails/
- Digital Curation Centre (DCC) briefing papers
- Curating E-mails : a Life-cycle Approach to the Management and Preservation of E-mail Messages
Pennock, Maureen
In: DCC Digital Curation Manual
(Date Created: 24 Jul 2006)
(United Kingdom)
- This installment of the Digital Curation Manual discusses the issues in the management and curation of emails. Issues covered include roles and responsibilites, legal issues, preservation strategies and curation approaches.
- http://www.dcc.ac.uk/resource/curation-manual/chapters/curating-e-mail
s/
- Available in html or pdf
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E-Mail and Potential Loss to Future Archives and Scholarship or The Dog that Didn't Bark
Lukesh, Susan
In: First Monday
(Date Created: Sep 1999)
(United States of America)
- This paper discusses the importance of informal communication and how it is increasingly created in electronic formats which need to be actively preserved. Lukesh recommends action by archivists, software vendors, public institutions and creators, particularly scholars, to aid preservation of e-mail.
- http://firstmonday.org/htbin/cgiwrap/bin/ojs/index.php/fm/article/view
/692/602
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E-Mail-XML Demonstrator: Technical Description
Testbed Digitale Bewaring
(Date Created: Oct 2002)
(Netherlands)
- This report describes the prototype software developed by the Dutch Testbed Digitale Bewaring project in its investigations of the issues of long-term preservation of email messages. The solution is based on customisation of Microsoft Outlook to allow communication with a central server responsible for metadata collection, conversion and archiving of both messages and metadata in XML. The report is in PDF format.
- http://www.digitaleduurzaamheid.nl/bibliotheek/docs/email-demo-en.pdf
- End of History
Arthur, Charles
(Date Created: 30 Jun 2003)
- This article briefly discusses the issues and future implications in preserving both government and personal emails. It briefly discusses both hardware and software obsolescence and emulation and features quotes from Michael Day from UKOLN and the Digital Preservation Coalition (DPC).
- http://news.independent.co.uk/digital/features/story.jsp?story=420334
- The full text of this article is available by subscription at http://www.independent.co.uk/portfolio/
- FAQ: You've Got Mail - Now What? Regulatory & Policy Dilemmas in Email Management: Part I: US Federal Environment
Entlich, Richard
In: RLG DigiNews
(Date Created: 15 Apr 2006)
(United States of America)
- This is the first of a two part discussion of legal issues surrounding the retention and preservation of emails as required by law in the United States. Part I covers US Federal law.
- http://worldcat.org/arcviewer/1/OCC/2007/08/08/0000070511/viewer/file8
80.html#article3
- FAQ: You've Got Mail - Now What? Regulatory & Policy Dilemmas in Email Management: Part II. US State Environment
Entlich, Richard
In: RLG DigiNews
(Date Created: 15 Jun 2006)
(United States of America)
- This is the second of a two part discussion of legal issues surrounding the retention and preservation of emails as required by law in the United States. Part II discusses a survey of the regulations in the 50 United States.
- http://worldcat.org/arcviewer/1/OCC/2007/08/08/0000070513/viewer/file1
916.html#article4
- Filing and Archiving E-mail
Boudrez, Filip
(Date Created: 2006)
(Belgium)
- The article discusses the quality requirements for an e-mail archiving procedure, including the DAVID model and some aspects of e-mail archiving including selection, migration to preservation formats and archving metadata. The article also describes how the Antwerp City Archives developed a system for the management and archiving of e-mail.
- http://www.expertisecentrumdavid.be/docs/filingArchiving_email.pdf
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Managing electronic mail
Bearman, David
(Date Created: May 1994)
- This article explores the issues associated with the management of electronic mail records. The author "applies a generic framework for managing electronic records to define an approach to accountable corporate management of electronic mail" (Archives and Manuscripts volume 22, no. 1, May 1994, pp. 28-50)
- in Archives and Manuscripts volume 22, no. 1, May 1994, pp. 28-50
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NARA Fumbles with E-mail Preservation Policy
Gellman, Robert
(Date Created: 9 Feb 1998)
(United States of America)
- This article discusses the loss of authenticity and functionality of electronic records which results once they are printed to paper. The discussion is based around the decision of a US court in 1993 that "an email document is not the same as a paper document" and "that hard copy printouts of email may omit important parts of the original electronic version".
- http://gcn.com/Articles/1998/02/09/NARA-fumbles-with-email-preservatio
n-policy.aspx
- in Government Computer News Network
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Preserving Electronic Records From Database-Driven Information Systems
Boudrez, Filip
In: DigiCULT.Info Newsletter
(Date Created: Oct 2003)
(Belgium)
- The DAVID Project (Digital Archiving in Flemish Institutions and Administrations) has developed “an electronic record-keeping system for dynamic and interactive information systems”. This article examines its implementation at the City Archives of Antwerp (the archival partner in the DAVID Project) and looks at the main structure, principles and concepts of the record-keeping system for both dynamically created records and office documents such as spreadsheets and emails; XML preservation of records and metadata.
- http://www.digicult.info/downloads/digicultinfo_issue5_october_2003.pd
f
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Preserving email
Marsden, Susan
(Date Created: 8 May 1996)
- This article discusses how the rapid growth in use of email poses urgent problems for archivists. Please contact
PADI if you would like a copy sent to you (National Library of Australia News volume 6, no. 8, May 1996, p.9-11)
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Researching Long Term Digital Preservation Approaches in the Dutch Digital Preservation Testbed (Testbed Digitale Bewaring)
Potter, Maureen
In: RLG DigiNews
(Date Created: 15 Jun 2002)
(Netherlands)
- Maureen Potter describes the work and progress to date of the Digital Preservation Testbed (Testbed Digitale Bewaring) belonging to the Dutch government's Digitale Duurzaamheid (Digital Longevity) programme aimed at retaining long term accessibility to government information. The article describes the Testbed's focus on four document types (text documents, email, spreadsheets and databases) using three preservation approaches (migration, emulation, XML), outlines the experimental methodology and provides some preliminary findings for text documents and emails.
- http://worldcat.org/arcviewer/1/OCC/2007/08/08/0000070511/viewer/file1
521.html#feature2
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Strategies for Capturing and Managing Emails as Records and as Organisational Assets
Cunningham, Adrian
(Date Created: 18 Apr 2002)
(Australia)
- A presentation by Adrian Cunningham of the National Archives of Australia on emails as organisational records, given at "Email as Government Record Workshop: Its Mismanagement and Control" held at the National Library of Australia on April 18, 2002. NB: Presentation is best viewed with Internet Explorer as the browser.
- http://pandora.nla.gov.au/pan/49634/20050620-0000/www.naa.gov.au/recor
dkeeping/noticeboard/emails_as_records_files/frame.htm
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XML for Digital Preservation : XML Implementation Options for E-Mails
Potter, Maureen
(Date Created: 11 Oct 2002)
(Netherlands)
- This article reports on progress at the Digital Preservation Testbed (Testbed Digital Bewaring) of the Netherlands in using XML as a preservation approach. It notes the advantages and disadvantages of XML for archival preservation and discusses three implementation options for conversion or provision of emails in XML. The article is in PDF format.
- http://www.digitaleduurzaamheid.nl/bibliotheek/docs/email-xml-imp.pdf
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Policies, Strategies & Guidelines
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From Digital Volatility to Digital Permanence : Preserving Email
Testbed Digitale Bewaring
(Date Created: Apr 2003)
- The Testbed Digitale Bewaring has released its final recommendations on the long term preservation of email. The publication covers cultural, legal, technical and practical issues. It also has sections targeted towards specific groups such as managers, record keepers and end users. There is a comparison of migration, emulation and XML as migration strategies, and the appendices include an XML schema for archiving Outlook emails. (some text in the schema is in Dutch)
- ISBN: 9080775819
- http://www.digitaleduurzaamheid.nl/bibliotheek/docs/volatility-permane
nce-email-en.pdf
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Kansas Electronic Records Management Guidelines
Kansas State Historical Society
(Last Updated: 17 Aug 1999)
(United States of America)
- These guidelines were developed for electronic recordkeeping by the Kansas State Historical Society. They include guidance about digital records management issues and strategies for identifying, managing and preserving electronic records of long-term value.
- http://www.kshs.org/government/records/electronic/electronicrecordsgui
delines.htm
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Managing E-mail as Records
Managing Electronic Records Seminar: the University of Texas at Austin Graduate School of Library and Information Science Technology Summer Camp
(Last Updated: 29 Jan 1998)
(United States of America)
- This study "investigated the ways that private and public industries and institutions implement email records management practices from both a technological and a policy perspective". The report discusses issues related to preserving email records, identifies four of the approaches that were being used to manage email records, and makes recommendations for improving future practice.
- http://www.gslis.utexas.edu/~scisco/lis389c.5/email/index.html
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Managing Electronic Messages as Records
National Archives of Australia
(Date Created: 1997)
(Australia)
- This policy outlines how electronic messages derived from Commonwealth Government business transactions should be managed. The policy promotes the need to retain these messages in recordkeeping systems for as long as they are required by the Commonwealth and the community.
- http://pandora.nla.gov.au/pan/22371/20011105-0000/www.naa.gov.au/recor
dkeeping/er/elec_messages/contents.html
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Policy on Electronic Messages as Records
State Records NSW
(Last Updated: 9 Mar 2001)
(Australia)
- This Australian document aims to "establish Government-wide policy on the management of electronic messages as records."
- http://www.records.nsw.gov.au/recordkeeping/government-recordkeeping-m
anual/rules/policies/policy-on-electronic-messages-as-records
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Recordkeeping and Electronic Mail Policy: the State of Thought and the State of the Practice (Draft)
Wallace, David A., School of Information, University of Michigan
(Date Created: 3 Sep 1998)
(United States of America)
- This paper was prepared for the 1998 Annual Meeting of the Society of American Archivists. It "reports on the current state of the practice of email policy as
it relates to records and recordkeeping by providing a content analysis of thirty-eight email policies (nine from universities, twenty-six from government, and three from the private sector) that are consciously oriented towards the recordkeeping implications of email".
- http://www.rbarry.com/dwallace.html
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Projects and Case Studies
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DAVID: Digitale Archivering in Vlaamse Instellingen en Diensten (Digital Archiving in Flemish Institutions and Administrations)
City Archives of Antwerp
(Last Updated: 10 Jan 2003)
- The DAVID Project was a 4 year collaboration of the City of Antwerp Archives and ICRI to research digital durability in a governmental environment which ended in December 2003. It sought to develop best practices for archiving electoral and population data, emails and websites and produced a manual on electronic archiving (last updated January 2006).
- http://www.expertisecentrumdavid.be/davidproject/
- Preservation of Electronic Mail Collaboration Initiative
North Carolina State Archives
(Date Created: 2006)
(United States of America)
- This project funded by the NHPRC (2006-2009) is a collaboration between North Carolina State Archives, the Kentucky Department of Library and Archives, and the Pennsylvania State Archives. It aims to: further develop the e-mail collection and preservation (EMCAP) tool; test the tool for scalability; produce training methodologies; test access provision; and attachment management.
- http://www.records.ncdcr.gov/EmailPreservation/
- Testbed Xmail
Testbed Digitale Bewaring
(Date Created: Nov 2005)
(Netherlands)
- The Digital Preservation Testbed from the National Archives of the Netherlands has developed an application to preserve their email in accordance with legal requirements. This application demonstrates how email messages can be created in a sustainable manner and preserved for the long term using XML (eXtensible Markup Language). This application is now freely available an open source software for download.
- http://www.digitaleduurzaamheid.nl/index.cfm?paginakeuze=299&categorie
=6
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- Collaborative Electronic Records Project (CERP) Email Preservation Parser
Smithsonian Institution Archives
(Date Created: Jul 2009)
(United States of America)
- The CERP email Parser is an open source software tool for the preservation of email accounts developed by the three year Collaborative Electronic Records Project of the Smithsonian Institution Archives and the Rockefeller Archive Center which concluded in December 2008. "The parser migrates an email account and its messages into a single XML file using the Email Account XML Schema developed in collaboration with the North Carolina State Archives and the EMCAP project."
- http://siarchives.si.edu/cerp/parserdownload.htm
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