Digital Data Exchange

HERs are expected to be able to demonstrate their ability to store, provide and add data in standardised formats that can readily be exchanged or converted in order to facilitate the process of digital data exchange. Any such digital data should be accompanied by suitable metadata which details the purpose, limitations, method of creation, origin, source, context, consistency and currency of the supplied data. HERs are also recommended to have a digital-data exchange agreement in place for any such data exchange. Any such agreement should detail the formats in which an HER receives data and provides it to others. 

Various methods are available for moving data between different locations, including commercial file-transfer services, secure file-transfer protocols, email and physical drives. However, there are a few things to consider when deciding on the most suitable medium:

• Corporate Policy: If receiving or sending data from a local authority then it is very likely that a secure corporate file transfer method will be required. Local authority IT policies normally restrict the use of commercial file-transfer services.
• Security: Regardless of corporate policy, any data which could contain personal information as defined by the GDPR should be treated with caution. Use a secure file-transfer service, possibly with additional password protection on the file, depending on risk.
• Size: Most email systems still impose limits on attachment size.
• Format: Some file formats are considered a virus risk, so are normally rejected by email systems. Some file formats are proprietary and may require specific software to open them.
• Ease of Use: While very secure, secure file-transfer protocols may be blocked by default on corporate networks and normally require the use of third-party software for uploading and downloading.

Public bodies are increasingly serving their data via Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) and/or web-mapping services, such that the required data transfers occur ‘on the fly’ as and when required. Likewise, as is discussed more fully in the Access and Engagement section of this Manual, many HERs are also serving their own data to internal and external users via APIs and/or web-mapping services, again ensuring that current data is being supplied to users at the point of need.