Records management at TU Wien is governed by various legal provisions as well as the university's own internal guidelines. On the one hand, federal laws oblige us to keep accurate and structured records, but our own policies also force us to introduce a well-organised records management system.

Federal Constitutional Law, opens an external URL in a new window- Accountability and Duty of Proof

Art. 20, para. 4

‘All organs entrusted with Federation, provinces and municipal administrative duties as well as the organs of other public law coporate bodies shall impart information about matters pertaining to their sphere of competence in so far as this does not conflict with a legal obligation to maintain confidentiality […]’

Federal Act on the Organisation of Universities and their Studies, opens an external URL in a new window - Obligation to keep records

§16 (1)

‘Every university shall install an accounting system, including income and expenditure accounting, and a reporting system, appropriate to its duties, which shall fall under the responsibility and management of the rectorate. [...]’

Freedom of Information Act - obligation to provide information promptly

§4 (1)

‘Information of general interest shall be published and made available on the Internet as soon as possible in a manner accessible to everyone by the bodies entrusted with the conduct of business of the federal administration or the provincial administration [...], insofar and as long as it is not subject to secrecy and as long as a general interest in it can be assumed [...]

Guidelines of TU Wien

Data protection and information security policy, opens an external URL in a new window

‘Comprehensive protection requirements apply to personal data and these must be strictly observed. This data must be secured using appropriate technical and organisational means at an economically justifiable cost. Statutory data protection must always be guaranteed.

The aim of information security is to protect information. All business processes in an organisation depend on information and a regulated flow of information, which is why it is so important to achieve and maintain an appropriate level of information security. […]

Information security focuses on protecting personal and company-related information as well as critical business processes. This is to prevent data form being lost, manipulate or falsified, or exposed to unauthorised access.” (Cf.: Institute of Internal Auditing Austria IIA Austria (ed.): Informationssicherheitsmanagementsystem. Damoklesschwert Daten-Gau – Systematische Prüfung und wirksame Prävention. Vienna 2016. P. 6.)

Submission guideline, opens an external URL in a new window

‘The following documents relating to ongoing operations must be sent to the Data Protection and Document Management Department after they have been received or sent, stating the sender, recipient and date of dispatch:

a) original contracts,

b) letters from and to public bodies such as ministries, the City of Vienna, parliament, etc. that are relevant to management of TU Wien

c) letters from and to lawyers,

d) minutes of meeting of the university council, rectorate, senate and university management, including accompanying materials.

If the documents [...] exist in electronic form (e-mail, data carrier, etc.), they must be submitted digitally.’

Policy for Research Data Management (RDM) at TU Wien, opens an external URL in a new window

‘Research data should from the beginning be stored and maintained in appropriate systems and made available for use in a suitable repository. [...]

It is important to preserve the integrity of research data and to comply with the FAIR principles. Research data must be stored in a correct, complete, unadulterated, and reliable manner. The must be findable, identifiable, accessible, traceable, interoperable and whenever possible reusable and replicable. […]

Research data that may be of future historical interest and the records accompanying them should also be archived.’