November 8, 2005
Meta Data: Digital Fingerprints That You Might Want to Hide
When typing documents, they often go through changes and editing. Different authors work on differnt parts of it; things are deleted, added and taken away. When you send the document to someone I bet you never thought that with little effort they can see your revisions and other things that you might not want them to see.
Cnet / NY Times writes Technically, metadata is sort of the DNA of documents created with modern word-processing software. By default, it is automatically saved into the deep structure of a file, hidden from view, with information that can hint at authorship, times and dates of revisions (along with names of editors) and other tidbits that, while perhaps useful to those creating the document, might be better left unseen by the wider world.
(If you use Microsoft Word, open a document, go to the File menu and choose Properties. You should see some metadata. Third-party programs are available that will crack open even more.)
According to some technologists, including Dennis M. Kennedy, a lawyer and consultant based in St. Louis, (denniskennedy.com), metadata might include other bits of information like notes and questions rendered as "comments" within a document ("need to be more specific here," for example, or in the case of my editors, "eh??"), or the deletions and insertions logged by such features as "track changes" in Microsoft Word.
"If you take the time to educate yourself a little and know the issues," Kennedy said, "you can avoid problems pretty easily."
Get Small Business Technology Report
Via Email Every Tuesday
What is Smallbiztechnology.com?
Smallbiztechnology.com helps small-medium sized businesses strategically use technology as a tool to grow their businesses and provides news, articles, discussion boards, resources, analysis & events for the owners of small to medium sized busineses.
Subscribe to the Smallbiztechnology feed.
Recent Posts
- All In One Network Appliances. Know Your Options.
- 9 Simple and Effective E-Commerce Sales Booster Ideas
- Power Point Presentations: Let It Be An Experience (Learning From Al Gore)
- Pay-Per-Click Advertising for Peanuts
- Downloading Microsoft Windows Updates Can Be Bad For Your Health
- Time is Money. How Are You Tracking Yours?
- Are You Collaborating Creatively?
- When Technology Embarrasses Us! :)
- Is Online Marketing Confusing You?
- Email Marketing Providers: How to Choose
Join our Facebook group
The Third Annual Small Business Summit 2008 was a smashing success. Check out the Summit site for what you missed. See the 2008 Summit presentations, video and photos!
Post a comment