What is integrity?
The integrity of data or a document refers to the absence of alteration: the content presented must be identical to the content that was originally created or stored. In the context of electronic records, integrity is an explicit condition for the record to have the same evidential weight as a paper document (the issue extends beyond admissibility to the probative value of the evidence).
From a technical perspective, integrity is often demonstrated through mechanisms such as cryptographic hashing, digital sealing or consistent event logs. The concept nevertheless remains a legal one: the objective is to establish that the content has not been modified.
What is authenticity?
Authenticity concerns origin and attribution: the ability to link a document, action or statement to a specific person (natural or legal) or to an identified system. In relation to electronic records, the person from whom the record originates must be duly identified.
Where authenticity relies on an electronic signature, the signature must be created by a reliable identification process ensuring its link with the document, with a presumption of reliability where the conditions set out by decree are satisfied.
Authenticity may also be established through an electronic seal. An electronic seal links a document to an organisation (rather than to a natural person) and confirms the document’s integrity through cryptographic mechanisms comparable to those used for electronic signatures.
What is traceability?
Traceability is the ability to reconstruct, in a clear and verifiable manner, the operations performed on data or a document (creation, deposit, modification, consultation, export or deletion), together with their parameters: who performed the action, what was done, when it occurred and within which application environment. It generally relies on event logs, transaction identifiers, timestamps and retention rules.
In practice, traceability does not automatically amount to proof. It provides contextual and consistency elements that must be considered together with integrity and authenticity in order to form a coherent evidential narrative.
What is the chain of custody?
The chain of custody designates the set of elements that explain, without interruption, how an item of evidence was collected, transferred, stored, protected and ultimately produced. The objective is to limit a common line of challenge: “the evidence may have been altered” or “it cannot be linked to its origin”.
In practical terms, a documented chain of custody describes the environments, access rights, transfers, hashes, possible sealing mechanisms and storage conditions, in order to support the integrity required for an electronic record.
What is an evidence file?
An evidence file is a structured set of documents and metadata intended to demonstrate a fact, a date, an origin or the performance of an obligation. It typically brings together:
- the document or data that constitutes the object of the evidence;
- contextual elements (identifiers, versions, parameters);
- integrity elements (hashes, seals, verification controls);
- traceability elements (logs, events); and
- applicable rules or methods (internal procedures, reference frameworks).
The objective is to present information in a form that can be readily understood by a third party (auditor, opposing party or court). Evidence is not merely data: it is a structured demonstration.
What is enforceability?
Enforceability refers to the capacity of a document, act or mechanism to be relied upon against a third party (or the other contracting party) and to produce effects in a legal dispute. It must be understood in conjunction with the burden of proof: the party claiming performance of an obligation must prove it, while the party asserting that it has been discharged must justify the payment or the extinguishing event.
In the digital environment, enforceability is often assessed through: the identification of the author (authenticity), the absence of alteration (integrity) and the ability to explain the sequence of operations (traceability and chain of custody).
For certain mechanisms, legislation provides specific legal effects or presumptions (for example, electronic signatures under defined conditions, and at EU level certain trust services).
