Understanding Records Management: Web Sites

Web sites may be a simple, static page that lists the hours of operation and a contact phone number for an agency, or they may be a complex website with multiple pages and interactive databases that allow remote users to add and delete data 24 hours a day. Some sites are conducting business transactions and storing sensitive data (such as credit card numbers or personal identifying information.)

Content on agency web sites needs to be preserved, but this depends on several factors, such as the type of information found on the site and whether or not it exists in another place. Agencies should evaluate their site and develop a strategy for documenting the site as information changes. This assessment is based on the type and amount of information found on the web site and, most importantly, the level of risk to the agency (legal, fiscal, or administrative) if that information is lost or unavailable. This may mean that the agency retains periodic "snapshots" of the entire site, or captures individual pages or records on the site.

Materials provided on agency web sites must be managed as other agency records are. Documents that would qualify as official records with permanent or long-term value should be captured and retained (either in hard copy or electronically). This may apply to individual parts of the agency web site or it may apply to the entire site. For example, if an agency places a publication on their web site, and the publication is not available in any other form, then that publication is the official record and should be captured and retained in some way. If the agency publishes a report on their web site and has paper copies or the computer file that was used to create the report, then the copy on the web site is a duplicate copy and probably does not need to be captured.

Additionally, if a web site is being used to conduct a business transaction the web pages associated with the activity are considered part of that transaction's legal documentation and must be retained in order to establish what the user saw when the order was placed.