Processing of Electronic Documents at the INAI: Preservation of E-Mails and of Information Posted on Social Network Institutional Accounts and Its Contribution to Transparency

Abstract

In Mexico, laws and regulations on transparency provide that information held by public agencies and entities is public. This information includes that contained in institutional e-mails, since these are considered to be archival documents that evidence the activities undertaken by public entities when exercising their functions. The information contained in institutional e-mail accounts, and that posted on social networks has become a working tool to optimize the activities of the public system and contributes to transparency. This information must be preserved by using suitable document management processes, since the servers where e-mails are hosted and social network platforms are not information repositories, and its preservation is required to guarantee the right to access. This paper discusses the importance of preserving such content and how such preservation contributes to transparency and accountability.