Entries Ownership & Metadata
In Epicollect5, understanding the metadata associated with entries, especially the email field, is important when managing ownership and privacy settings.
1. Metadata for Private Projects
Private Projects: When a project is set to private, the system collects the email address used by the contributor to authenticate when submitting data, per each entry submitted.
This feature provides a layer of accountability and traceability for entries in private projects, allowing project managers to identify who submitted the data.
The email metadata is included in entry exports and downloads, enabling project managers to track ownership and verify submissions effectively.
2. Metadata for Public Projects
Public Projects: In contrast, for public projects, the email field is not collected or exposed in the metadata.
The absence of email information ensures that contributors' privacy is maintained, as public project data are accessible to anyone.
This means that entries from public projects cannot be linked to specific users or email addresses.
3. Transition from Public to Private
Impact on Metadata During Transition: If a project starts as public and is later switched to private, the email information will not be available for entries submitted while the project was public.
This is because, during the public phase, email data was not collected, aligning with the platform's design for public project privacy.
Any new entries submitted after the project becomes private will include the email metadata, but older entries will remain without this information.
Practical Implications
Data Ownership and Accountability: For private projects, the inclusion of the email field allows project managers to ensure data integrity and accountability, as they can trace entries back to authenticated contributors.
Privacy Considerations: Public projects prioritize user privacy by not collecting personal identifiers like email addresses, making them suitable for use cases where anonymity is preferred.
Project Configuration: It is important to carefully plan whether a project should be private or public at its inception. Transitioning a project from public to private may create a gap in metadata consistency, as older entries will lack email data.
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