Information Management Journal articles from March 2008

Information Management Journal archives from March 2008

Old rules, new rules, classic evergreen rules.(IN FOCUS: A Message from the Editors)
March 1, 2008... Both the U.S. records and information management (RIM) and legal communities are abuzz these days about the 2006 revision to the U.S. Federal Rules of Civil Procedure (FRCP). The FRCP is an influential document for all U.S. civil procedures; it...

Correction.(IN FOCUS: A Message from the Editors)(Correction notice)
March 1, 2008... Production errors that occurred in "The Importance of Architecture in ERM Software Selections" in the January/February 2008 issue may have confused readers. First, an incorrect description of the article appeared on the title page; second,...

Revised FOIA Bill becomes law.(UP FRONT: News, Trends & Analysis)
March 1, 2008... On December 31, President Bush signed into law revised legislation designed to improve and strengthen the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), the United States' open records law protecting Americans' right to know what the government is doing....

CIA destroyed videotapes.(UP FRONT: News, Trends & Analysis)(Central Intelligence Agency)
March 1, 2008... The U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) admitted in December that it had destroyed hundreds of hours of CIA videotape showing suspected terrorist interrogations. CIA Director Michael Hayden said the tapes had been destroyed to protect...

Magna Carta copy to stay at archives.(UP FRONT: News, Trends & Analysis)(Brief article)
March 1, 2008... A 710-year-old copy of the Magna Carta, the last remaining copy in the United States and the last in private hands, recently fetched $21.3 million--or $8,528 a word--at Sotheby's auction. David Rubenstein, a Washington, D.C., businessman...

Library project to scan 60 million documents.(UP FRONT: News, Trends & Analysis)(Boston Public Library)(Publicresource.org)(Internet Archive)
March 1, 2008... A $6 million digital library partnership that includes the Boston Public Library and two nonprofit organizations will make more than 60 million government documents available at no cost via the Internet. The project, which will include...

NARA: Clinton records ready.(UP FRONT: News, Trends & Analysis)(Bill Clinton and Hillary Clinton)(Judicial Watch Inc v U.S. National Archives and Records Administration)
March 1, 2008... According to the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), a portion of Hillary Clinton's White House office records from her years as first lady are now ready for release; it is now up to the Clintons to do so. NARA informed...

NARA seeks to speed presidential disclosures.(UP FRONT: News, Trends & Analysis)(National Archives and Records Administration)(Brief article)
March 1, 2008... The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) said it is exploring new methods to speed the disclosure of records at U.S. presidential libraries. Archivists completed an in-house study in 2007 that reviewed ways to achieve faster...

FTC oks Google deal, issues guidelines.(UP FRONT: News, Trends & Analysis)(Federal Trade Commission)
March 1, 2008... In late December, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) approved search engine Google's controversial merger with online marketing giant DoubleClick and simultaneously released voluntary privacy guidelines for online advertising practices. ...

Oregon requires firms to protect data.(UP FRONT: News, Trends & Analysis)(Oregon Identity Theft Protection Act)(Brief article)
March 1, 2008... Identity theft is a major problem in the United States and certainly in Oregon, which is ranked the 13th-worst state per capita for the crime by the Federal Trade Commission. The Oregon Identity Theft Protection Act, effective January 1,...

Spoliation sinks TorrentSpy.(UP FRONT: News, Trends & Analysis)(Motion Picture Association of America v. TorrentSpy)(Case overview)
March 1, 2008... In a case closely watched by those interested in copyright law and peer-to-peer (P2P) networking, a federal judge handed the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) a victory after ruling that file-sharing firm TorrentSpy had destroyed...

SOX costs sock small firms.(UP FRONT: News, Trends & Analysis)(Sarbanes-Oxley Act)(Report)
March 1, 2008... Smaller companies may have received multiple extensions for full compliance with the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 (SOX), but they aren't getting any favors when it comes to its costs. "The Cost of Being Public in the Era of Sarbanes-Oxley,"...

Ex-Los Alamos archivist sentenced.(UP FRONT: News, Trends & Analysis)
March 1, 2008... A former archivist at Los Alamos National Laboratory has been sentenced to two years' probation for taking home classified records from the New Mexico nuclear weapons facility. Jessica Quintana, 23, pleaded guilty in May 2007 to a...

DC mayor dumps proposed e-mail policy.(UP FRONT: News, Trends & Analysis)(Washington, D.C.)
March 1, 2008... Washington, D.C., Mayor Adrian Fenty decided to delete his controversial e-mail retention policy that was set to begin in January due to a flood of criticism from the public and city council. The proposed e-mail policy, first introduced in...

Infrared to protect information.(UP FRONT: News, Trends & Analysis)(Xerox Corp.)(Brief article)
March 1, 2008... Protecting everyday documents such as tickets, deeds, and licenses against forgery has traditionally been cost-prohibitive and difficult. But that may change, with the introduction of Xerox's inexpensive new infrared technology. ...

Record data breaches in 2007.(UP FRONT: News, Trends & Analysis)
March 1, 2008... It's official--2007 was a record year for data breaches. And if things don't improve, 2008 may see as many, if not more, cases of data loss or theft, experts say. Even as companies, government agencies, and other organizations are spending...

U.S. deputy archivist retires; successor named.(UP FRONT: News, Trends & Analysis)(appointment of Adrienne C. Thomas in National Archives and Records Administration)(Brief article)
March 1, 2008... Lewis Bellardo, deputy archivist and chief of staff at the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) since 1995, retired December 31, 2007. U.S. Archivist Allen Weinstein has named Adrienne C. Thomas to succeed Bellardo. ...

Swiss adopt RM standard.(UP FRONT: News, Trends & Analysis)(records management)(Brief article)
March 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] The Swiss government has adopted the eCH-0038-Records Management Framework model as a federal standard for e-government, according to the European ePractice newsletter. The reference model is a Swiss adaptation of...

FRCP challenges counsel.(UP FRONT: News, Trends & Analysis)(Federal Rules of Civil Procedure)(Survey)
March 1, 2008... The second-annual LexisNexis Corporate Counsel Survey, conducted during the Association of Corporate Counsel Annual Meeting in late October 2007 and released in November 2007, revealed the views of corporate counsel regarding the 2006...

2008: year of e-mail management.(UP FRONT: News, Trends & Analysis)(Federal Rules of Civil Procedure)(Survey)
March 1, 2008... While many companies are not prepared to meet the revised 2006 Federal Rules of Civil Procedure (FRCP) requirements, 64 percent of firms do plan to implement e-mail retention policies this year, according to a recent survey. And that's good...

Vietnam, Laos sign archives deal.(UP FRONT: News, Trends & Analysis)(National Archive Centre)(Brief article)
March 1, 2008... The Vietnamese and Laotian archive departments signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on cooperative projects in 2008. In the MOU, signed November 28, 2007, the countries agree to regularly exchange information and experience in...

Experts: government data unseen online.(UP FRONT: News, Trends & Analysis)
March 1, 2008... During a December U.S. Senate panel, experts urged lawmakers to make the content of government databases more accessible to the public by linking them to mainstream search engines such as Google, Yahoo, and Microsoft. Currently, government...

Secrecy still reigns: despite a few recent advances for open records, those who favor open government say there has been a sharp decrease in government transparency.(ON THE EDGE: The Use & Misuse of Information)
March 1, 2008... At this writing, U.S. President George W. Bush has little more than 10 months left in office. But the effect of his decisions regarding government records may prove to be long-lasting. According to open-government groups, the U.S....

The pillars of vital records protection: being prepared to resume business quickly in the event of disaster requires that digital, as well as paper, vital records be identified and protected by staff members that understand the goals of the vital records program and their roles in it.
March 1, 2008... More than a half-century ago, the U.S. Federal Civil Defense Administration conducted a test called Operation Teapot to gauge the effects of a nuclear explosion on a variety of business records and records storage equipment. The focus in that...

Determining the scope of legal holds: waypoints for navigating the road ahead: when preparing for anticipated litigation, a company's primary obligation is to determine a scope of what to hold--and so decide what documents and information it must preserve.
March 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Since the December 2006 revised U.S. Federal Rules of Civil Procedure went into effect, organizations have been struggling more than ever to understand litigation, or legal, holds, and, in particular, the scope of...

Keys for securing private information in an EDMS: implementing an electronic document management system (EDMS) security scheme will limit personnel to the minimum information access needed for legitimate business reasons.
March 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Electronic document management/imaging systems (EDMS) are subject to the same rules and regulations as other information systems. However, being document-centric, applying these rules and regulations has its own...

How to develop an emergency management plan: while it won't replace the logic of decision-making or common sense, a good, detailed emergency management plan can greatly enhance an organization's ability to respond to most emergencies and reduce the potential loss.(Management Wise)
March 1, 2008... The purpose of emergency planning is to provide the basis for systematic responses to emergencies that threaten an organization and the records and information necessary for continuing operations. Survival is not defined solely as getting...

Where RM should report to ensure effective electronic records management: as the volume of electronically stored information continues to grow exponentially, it is crucial for records management to report wherever it will gain the most influence and leverage across the organization.(Business Matters)
March 1, 2008... Unlike any other aspect of business, records management--the act of planning and managing every piece of an organization's captured information--is an element of every business process. From the articles of incorporation to the penciled notes...

Are records miscellaneous?(Book review)
March 1, 2008... TITLE: Everything Is Miscellaneous: The Power of the New Digital Disorder AUTHOR: David Weinberger PUBLISHER: New York Times Books PUBLICATION DATE: May, 2007 LENGTH: 278 pages PRICE: $25 SOURCE: Available in most...

Managing the e-maelstrom: strategies for minimizing the risks of e-mail.(Brief article)
March 1, 2008... The proliferation of electronic messaging technology has created an e-maelstrom for organizations, leaving them struggling in their efforts to get it under control and limit their financial and legal exposure associated with its discovery...

Technologies for managing e-mail.
March 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Advances in electronic messaging technology are radically changing the way people collaborate, and organizations must understand the business and legal implications of that. They must also develop and implement an...

Strategies for minimizing litigation risks, costs.
March 1, 2008... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] It's nearly inconceivable for anyone working in an office environment to imagine a life without e-mail. People talk shop, negotiate deals, send documents, give advice, and just plain chat on e-mail every day. And...