System and application metadata record creation, modification, authorship, and access. These fields support authentication and may reveal alteration, backdating, or the true creation sequence.
Metadata is lost when documents are printed or converted.
Alternative Names:
Metadata Evidence|Authenticating Metadata
Why it Matters?
Metadata frequently contradicts a document's apparent date or authorship, which makes native format production valuable beyond convenience where authenticity is contested. Production in PDF strips the fields entirely. Metadata is also alterable by someone with sufficient access, so it establishes probable rather than conclusive authenticity, and forensic examination of the underlying system provides the stronger showing.
Frequently Confused with
Related terms
Frequently asked questions
Why does native production matter?
Is metadata conclusive?
