Digital Records and Digital Preservation

  • A digital record is an electronic version of information, either originally created in digital form ("born-digital") or converted from a physical document through scanning (a “digital surrogate” or “digitised record”). Digital records can be created by anyone (organisations, individuals, community groups) at any time.

    “Born-digital” - Born-digital records are records that have been natively created in digital format. Examples of born-digital information include:

    • email

    • text-based documents (for example Word documents, Google documents)

    • presentations (for example PowerPoint)

    • spreadsheets (for example Excel)

    • PDFs

    • images and videos

    • CAD drawings

    • 3D models

    • data sets and data bases

    “Digital Surrogate” - a digital copy or scan of a physical record that is mostly used for access purposes, if it is not possible to view the original record in-person, or if it is too fragile to handle.

    “Digitised Record” - a physical, or analogue, record that has been converted into a digital format. In this case, the original physical record may not be kept.

  • There are many risks surrounding digital records, that are different to those we might typically associate paper records. They include:

    • Media obsolescence: physical storage media containing digital records (like floppy disks or CDs), or the hardware needed to read them, can become outdated and no longer accessible.

    • Media Degradation: Storage media can decay over time, leading to unseen and undetected loss or damage to digital information. 

    • Software and Format Obsolescence: File formats, software, and operating systems can become outdated, making it impossible to open or interpret digital records.

    • Corruption and loss: Digital records are vulnerable to becoming corrupted, lost, or altered without a proper management system in place.

    • Lack of context or loss of metadata: Information that provides context for the digital record (e.g., copyright, legal rights, usage instructions) can be lost, diminishing its usefulness and value. 

    • Cyberattacks and theft: Digital records are vulnerable to cyberattacks, data theft, and other security breaches that can lead to data loss or unauthorized access.


  • To mitigate these risks, it is important to implement robust digital preservation processes, that will protect digital records and allow them to remain accessible long into the future.

  • Digital Preservation refers to the “series of managed activities necessary to ensure continued access to digital materials for as long as necessary , including all of the actions required to maintain access to digital materials beyond the limits of media failure or technological and organisational change”. (Digital Preservation Coalition definition - https://www.dpconline.org/digipres/what-is-digipres)

    Examples of these activities include:

    • Policy and planning: Establishing clear policies and a strategy to guide digital preservation activities, including defining roles and responsibilities

    • Risk management: Identifying and planning for risks such as technological obsolescence, organisational change, media decay, and file corruption. 

    • Metadata and description: Capturing descriptive, technical, and administrative information about digital records to make them understandable and searchable for future users.

    • Managing file formats: Converting digital materials into standardised, non-obsolete formats to ensure they can be opened and read in the future.

    • Implementing a digital preservation system: Storing digital records in a purpose-built system environment that actively preserves digital content, with multiple copies in different locations, and which performs regular integrity checks to detect and address corruption or obsolescence.

    • Accessibility and Discovery: Developing systems and processes to allow users to find, access, and use the digital content when needed.

    • Croydon Archives is committed to preserving the fullest, highest-quality available version of a digital record, whenever possible; and the descriptive, structural, and administrative metadata associated with it. 

      • Digital records selected for permanent preservation will be stored in the digital preservation system, Arkivum. Arkivum performs and documents the required migration and normalisation to ensure that digital records remain accessible regardless of technological changes. Arkivum has a suitable back up and disaster recovery plan in place to mitigate the risk of data loss or supplier failure. 

      • The original ‘bit stream’ of digital objects is preserved wherever possible. Croydon Archives actively monitors collections for corruption and unauthorised changes, both in Arkivum and prior to transfer into the system, by comparing checksums (a 'digital fingerprint' whereby even the smallest change to the file will cause the checksum to change completely).  

      • Any preservation activities performed on digital content is tested and recorded. 

      • Digital records stored on removable media such as CDs, floppy disk and USB sticks is transferred to the digital repository as soon as possible to mitigate the risk of permanent loss of content through hardware corruption, degradation and damage. All transfers of removable media are ingested into Arkivum within a maximum of 6 months from the date of transfer.   

        We also endeavour to:

      • Apply all relevant legislation to digital records as with hard-copy collections, including: 

        Freedom of Information Act (2000) 

        Data Protection Act (2018) 

        Copyright Act (1988) 

      • maintain a detailed Digital Asset Register, to ensure that we understandour digital records and can prioritise ingest and cataloguing based on levels of risk.  

      • monitor and review our digital preservation policy, strategy and processes over time, to ensure that they remain relevant and in line with best practice. 

      • ensure that the relevant colleagues within Croydon Archives, and Croydon Council more widely, will be provided with appropriate training in digital preservation activities, to improve overall staff confidence, awareness and capability. 

      • advocate for digital preservation across Croydon Council, to ensure that there are sufficient and sustainable resources to support its digital preservation activities in the long-term.  

      • to provide access to digital collections that are open to consultation via its online catalogue and public Research Room.