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Email and Electronic Records

What’s the best way to organize electronic records?

Consider the experience of the user and how they need to access the records. Create folders to file similar records together. Arrange by function and then chronologically. Reference our resource that includes file structure examples by record type.  Also check out our tips on how to name files and folders. For a comprehensive plan, use our E-Record Policy Builder to create a standard operating procedure for your unit.

If you have questions, you can email our resident expert, Professor FilePlan (ProfFilePlan@uw.edu).

 

What sort of information is included in an E-Record Policy?

E-Record Policies must include specific information on the following topics:

  • Purpose
  • Scope
  • Storage Location and Access
  • Filing and Organization
  • Preservation and Disposition

We encourage you to use our E-Record Policy Builder to help create an effective and comprehensive E-Record Policy for your unit.

Do emails have retention periods? And if so, how do I determine the retention period?

Yes. Like any other kind of record, retention periods do have to be applied to emails. The retention is based on the content of each individual email since email itself is not a record; it is a way of transmitting information. Most emails have a very transitory value and therefore can be deleted as soon as they have fulfilled their reference purpose. These emails include preliminary drafts, general announcements, and routine requests for information.

For a full list of content that does not have to be retained: Materials That May Be Disposed of Without a Specific Retention Period.

However, all other email must be retained for some period of time. The following are examples of categories of email which have specific retention periods:

  • Policy and Procedure Directives
  • Agendas and minutes of meetings
  • Messages related to legal or audit issues
  • Messages that document departmental/office actions, decisions, operations and responsibilities
  • Final reports or recommendations
  • Approvals for purchasing or hiring new employees

To determine the retention periods of these records, please refer to the UW General Records Retention Schedules and your Departmental Retention Schedule.

For more information, please refer to our resource on Email Management.

Now that we are creating records electronically, do I still need to print a copy?

No. Currently, most records are created or received electronically, and maintaining them in their native electronic format is actually preferred over printing and retaining them in paper. However, be aware that electronic records are governed by the same retention requirements as paper records. When saving electronic records or designing a database you need to consider the retention period of the record and ensure it is accessible and readable for the full retention period. You must also ensure that it can be deleted or wiped at the end of the retention period. Any paper copies are considered duplicates and should not be saved. Please don’t hesitate to contact us at recmgt@uw.edu or 543-0573 to discuss this further.

Prior to departure, what do I do with the email of a separating employee?

On average, over 80% of emails are transitory and can safely be deleted before an employee leaves your department. However, the remainder of records with continuing retention requirements must be transferred to another repository so that they are able to be searched, read, and produced for the full retention period (refer to Section 6 of the University Email Policy). This can mean transferring messages to another employee’s email or a departmental email account or saving them outside of email such as on a shared network drive.

If you have questions, or would like a recommendation, please contact us at recmgt@uw.edu or 543-0573.

When should I consider moving records out of my email to a shared location?

The following is a list of situations where it makes sense to move emails to a more enduring, shared location:

  • Important attachments (Save only the attachment and delete the email)
  • When you want to keep all records on a particular person/project together in one place
  • Records that colleagues will benefit from having access to
  • Records with retention periods of 10+ years
  • When you are leaving your position, any records that have continuing retention or value to the office

Remember, you can use shared folders or a departmental email account to provide shared access to email records as well.

I need to save some messages outside of email. What file format should I use? Should I drag-and-drop or convert them to PDF?

When you drag-and-drop an email from Microsoft Outlook it saves the email and any attachments as a .msg file. This file format is acceptable in most cases, but for records with retention periods of 10+ years, or if you have people in your office who do not use Outlook for email, converting emails to PDF is the preferred solution.

If you're looking to transfer emails to another person or office, speak with them first about what method and format (e.g., snapshot, shared folders, forwarding, PST, MSGs, PDFs, etc.) will work best. Please note: preserving metadata is often paramount in legal matters. In these cases, forwarding or converting emails may not be the best approach as the process can potentially modify or destroy part of an email's metadata.

Do records retention schedules apply to electronic records too?

Yes. Records retention schedules cover all records created or received by University employees, whether in paper or electronic format. Both the state and the federal government define a record as information “regardless of physical form or characteristics”, so by definition, an email, database, or word document is also a record. Since every record has a specific amount of time it must be retained before it can be destroyed, this retention requirement applies to electronic records as well. At the end of the retention period, electronic records should be deleted or transferred to the University Archives (if listed as “Archival” or “Potentially Archival” on a UW Records Retention Schedule).

Please be aware that all records pertaining to ongoing or pending audits, lawsuits (or even reasonably anticipated lawsuits), or public disclosure proceedings are said to be on destruction hold and must not be altered or destroyed until the hold has been lifted and the records have met their retention. For best practices and guidance on how to organize digital records on a destruction hold, please refer to our Destruction Holds Resource.

What does our office need to know before we start using OneDrive/Google Drive?

Any records created or received by your office must remain findable and accessible for the full retention period. This is not always straight forward in OneDrive/Google Drive. Keep in mind when using these systems:

  • Use a OneDrive for Business account linked to a departmental UW NetID. This allows you to sidestep the potential loss of documents that can occur when an employee leaves your department. Better yet, use a SharePoint site that has shared owner permissions.
  • You will not be able to use a Google Drive account liked to a Shared NetID and are at risk for the loss of active documents when the employee who created them leaves your department.
  • Like any other records repository, set and manage your access permissions in order for others to be able to view and access documents stored in the cloud. This prevents silos that can be lost or forgotten.
  • Incorporate records cleanup into your off-boarding process. Departing employees should delete any records that are past retention and, if using individual accounts, migrate any records with continuing retention to a durable, shared repository/location like SharePoint.

For more information about the responsibilities inherent in using a third-party cloud service provider, please refer to our resource on Cloud-Based Applications Best Practices. If you have questions, or would like further clarification, please contact us at recmgt@uw.edu or 543-0573.

Our office received a destruction hold notice for an ongoing public record request, audit, investigation, or litigation. What should I do? Should I be reorganizing my email or even my electronic folders? How should I reorganize my digital records?

You must identify any and all responsive records and ensure they are not altered or destroyed while on the destruction hold. For best practices and guidance on how to organize digital records on a destruction hold, please refer to our Destruction Holds Resource.

What are the requirements for recording virtual meetings?

When you record a meeting via a video conferencing platform like Zoom, Teams, or Skype, you are creating a record. Like other University records, it must be retained for the legally-approved retention period and may be releasable if requested under the Washington State Public Records Act or under Federal FOIA. It is University best practice to avoid recording meetings unnecessarily. If you do record your meeting, you must:

  • Be mindful of laws that may relate to recordings (e.g., RCW 9.73.030 – Washington’s two-party consent requirements for private conversations)
  • Save the recording to an appropriate electronic repository for the full retention period.
  • Be able to find, access, and produce the recording, if requested.
  • Apply retention and delete recordings (at least) annually as their individual retention periods expire.

For more detailed recommendations, refer to our resource on Best Practices for Zoom and Other Conferencing Recordings.

How long do I have to keep my backups?

Backups are considered to be duplicates. Duplicates can be destroyed once they have served their reference purpose. We highly recommend using backups only to restore data in cases of a disk failure, accidental deletion, or for disaster recovery purposes. We recommend that full backups should not be kept for more than 6 months and that partial backups not be kept for more than 3 months.

How long do I have to keep webpages/sites?

It depends upon the type of changes that are being made to the webpage.

If you are only modifying the layout or display, or making other revisions that don't substantially change the content, then you do not have to keep a copy of old webpages.

If the changes to the webpage include revising, adding or removing substantive information like policies or procedures, requirements, deadlines, program or course descriptions, then the site must be retained permanently as a historical or “Archival” record. Other sites that contain research data should be kept for 6 years after the end of the research study under which the data was created.

How do I properly archive and retain old webpages/sites?

There are two simple ways to retain an old webpage/site:

  1. Before making the changes, download a copy of the page/site and file it chronologically with any previous changes/updates.
  2. If your website is capable of it, enable version control. This will track the different revisions as you update content and enables you to pull up previous versions when needed.

Note: Be sure to also capture any important embedded content or downloadable files that are part of the page.

Please refer to our resource on Saving Webpages for Retention and Holds for more detail.

If your page is the official location of policy, procedure, or program descriptions you can contact the University Archivist, John Bolcer for information on how to transfer these websites to the University Archives for permanent preservation.

What is the retention for instant messages, texts and tweets?

Washington State defines a record as information regardless of physical form or characteristics. Chat/instant messages, tweets, texts and any other forms of written communication are subject to retention requirements and to public records requests. Because it is so difficult to capture these communications, we strongly advise not using them for approvals or to provide customized or unique advice to a student or employee. Those messages are best relayed through email. Chat platforms are not appropriate for substantive information.

Like email, the content of the message determines the retention. Generally, most if not all of these messages can be considered transitory and will fall under the listing for email you can delete in the UW Email Best Practices.

As of May 1, 2024, UW-IT implemented an automated retention policy on Microsoft Teams Chats as well as chat messages posted in Microsoft Teams meetings. Chat messages in these formats will be purged 30 days after date of creation.

If approvals or unique advice is communicated to a student or employee via instant message, text, or a tweet, we advise that the conversation be saved to a more robust records repository (such as a network shared drive or an official UW email account) and retained based on its retention on the UW Records Retention Schedule. Contact us at recmgt@uw.edu or 206-543-0573 for help identifying a specific record series.

What is the retention for Facebook and other social media?

Like all other electronic records, the retention for Facebook and all other social media is determined by the content of the post. If social media is used as a marketing tool and any information posted can be found on an official website or imbedded in written policy and procedure, then the content of the social media site can be considered a duplicate record. Duplicates can be destroyed as soon as they have served their reference purpose. In addition, we suggest taking down content that is not up-to-date.

If your Facebook account or other social media sites are the official location of policy, procedure, or program descriptions that are not posted in another location, you can contact the University Archivist, John Bolcer for information on how to transfer these sites to the University Archives for permanent preservation.

I administer our office Mailman Listserv. Are these messages considered records? Do these messages have any record retention requirements?

If the messages are sent, received, and archived in connection with the transaction of University business they are considered a public record; therefore, they should be retained using an approved UW Records Retention Schedule

Retention is based on the purpose of the listserv and the content of the emails. Most listserv messages are transitory and can be deleted once their reference purpose is served. Messages like those containing final recommendations or approvals for actions taken, on the other hand, must be retained for 6 years.

Because UW-IT deletes archived messages from Mailman after only 2 years, those messages which have continuing retention requirements should be transferred to another storage location such as a network drive, or SharePoint site. This is also true for any messages which may be needed for an audit, litigation, or public records request as they must be retained until the action has been resolved. Once there is no longer a legal, fiscal, or administrative need to retain these saved messages, they should be deleted from their storage location.

For more information, refer to the Mailman Data Retention Policy.