“404 Not Found – Who is to preserve the internet?” Past, present and future in digital space

Abstract

The ever-growing amount of digital content and the widespread use of the internet require that the long-term and secure preservation of the data content created in digital space, i.e. of the digital past, be accomplished for scientific processing, for transmission to future generations and social use – as the author of this study, Dr. Csaba Latorcai, Minister of State for Public Administration of the Ministry of Human Capacities pointed out in his address at an online workshop entitled “404 Not Found – Who is to preserve the internet?” Past, present and future in digital space held on December 2, 2020.

The proficient and secure preservation and utilization of the data generated in digital space requires an appropriate professional background, which is provided by the National Széchényi Library (NSZL), the library of the Hungarian nation. The government passed a resolution on the provision of resources necessary for the IT development of the NSZL. The pilot preparatory work for web archiving has been completed, and NSZL is prepared to continuously perform its web archiving tasks. The relevant government resolution and act amendment determine the legal and financial frameworks of web archiving from January 1, 2021. As a result, by involving the widest possible range of Hungarian libraries, by following and shaping international tendencies in the field, NSZL implements long-term preservation and the use of web content classified as a Hungaricum, as well as it ensures scientific processing.