Research Article

Technical, Legal and Ethical Issues of Archiving Social Media

Volume: 39 Number: 1 March 31, 2025
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Technical, Legal and Ethical Issues of Archiving Social Media

Abstract

Purpose: Social media has become an essential part of human life today. The increasing use of social media, which people use to communicate and interact with one another, has enabled it to be used in many areas besides communication. This has made it an archival object that needs to be preserved/archived for the future. However, this situation has also created some problems. This study aims to explain the technical, legal, and ethical issues encountered when archiving social media content. Method: In this study, which was carried out using the descriptive method, a literature review was conducted through library, internet research, and database examination regarding the problems encountered in social media archiving. Findings: The challenges encountered in archiving social media have been evaluated under three categories: technical, legal, and ethical. Technical challenges include selecting social media content, capturing and collecting it, identifying, protecting, accessing, structuring, and managing the volume and types of content, as well as a lack of digital skills and issues related to APIs. Legal issues include platform terms of service, developer policies, intellectual property, and copyright. Ethical challenges encompass informed consent and privacy issues. Implications: Since social media archiving relies on the platforms and the terms of service and policies established by them, it is expected that the technical, legal, and ethical issues surrounding social media content will continue, and these challenges must be addressed. Originality: This study is one of the pioneering studies that explains the technical, legal, and ethical problems of social media archiving in Turkey. It is also thought that this study can be a resource for future studies on social media archiving and will guide institutions and researchers dealing with social media archiving against the issues they may encounter.

Keywords

Social media , archiving social media , issues of archiving social media

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APA
Kaya, A. (2025). Sosyal Medyayı Arşivlemenin Teknik, Yasal ve Etik Sorunları. Türk Kütüphaneciliği, 39(1), 1-26. https://doi.org/10.24146/tk.1443560