Framework for management of digital records on the cloud

This is a framework for the management of cloud digital records in South Africa. The framework demonstrates how a government department relying on the cloud for records preservation may go about managing such records. The framework is very generic to open a room for any organisation to customise it to their own environmental circumstances. The framework also allows for the application of blockchain technology for government departments and archives to share data about how records are managed across each other’s domains. According to the framework, like it happens with proposal and implementation of records preservation strategies, management of records in any medium or form is initiated and driven by records management practitioners with their manager. For institutional leadership, it is approved after proper consultation and ascertainment of any issues currently about the records in question. These may be investigations that need such records as evidence, litigations related to activities produced by the records in question and requests pending in terms of the Promotion of Access to Information Act (PAIA) 2000 and issues relating to the Promotion of Administrative Justice Act (PAJA) 2000. This important records management task needs to be discharged by qualified records management officials since once mistakes happen, the process is usually irreversible and may eventually pose a very serious consequence. Practitioners must obviously act under the leadership of a suitably qualified records manager to guide, mentor and supervise the whole process. Appropriate legislations stipulating requirements for management of records in the cloud, should also be consulted together with other related guidelines and procedures. Obviously, based on the records retention schedule during management, the disposal process will result in other records being destroyed and others transferred to archive repository for permanent preservation. This will depend on which records are considered ephemeral and which ones are archival based on the institutional appraisal, in conjunction with the national archivist’s guidance. Automatically, records considered ephemeral will lead to destruction and those with archival value will end up being transferred to the archive repository. An archival institution also needs to be ready, while in time for the kinds of records that will eventually be transferred to them, so that they are able to preserve them for the citizens or public people like researchers, historians and so on. In other words, for cloud records, the archive repository may need to have their own cloud to ensure the principle of respond des fond that has to do with respecting treatment of such records based on the original creator in terms of storage, description and classification scheme. End-users may be provided with an online controlled platform for accessing the archival records, eventually preserved by the archive. An archive may have a functionality for approving access to different clients online, unless if the archival materials are open access.