Remove avoidable exposure before encryption
Encryption protects the archive that is created; it does not correct overcollection, duplicates, hidden temporary files or unredacted personal data. Clean a controlled copy, retain the original source separately and document every exclusion or transformation.
The coordinator finds duplicate PDFs, OCR text, thumbnails, exported chat attachments and draft redactions in staging. Reviewers retain the best supported version, confirm final redactions, remove temporary derivatives and compare the cleaned manifest with the collection record.
Run the control in five steps
- 01Work from a read-only or preserved source copy.
- 02Identify duplicates, temporary exports, thumbnails and superseded drafts.
- 03Confirm redactions and privileged exclusions with counsel.
- 04Validate file names, metadata, page counts and hashes.
- 05Approve the clean set before importing it into protected storage.
Preserve a defensible decision trail
Keep the source reference, duplicate rule, redaction reviewer, removed item, reason, replacement version, validation result and approver. Do not overwrite the preserved source merely to make the working set tidy.
Stop and investigate when
- Cleaning changes the only preserved source copy.
- A redacted PDF still contains extractable hidden text.
- Duplicates are removed without a documented rule.
State what the control does not prove
Does not replace provider permissions, guaranteed backup, password recovery or enterprise identity management. Validate preservation, authorization, plaintext copies, provider controls and recovery separately.
Legal discovery security questions
Can duplicate files simply be deleted?
Only after a documented deduplication rule and preservation decision.
Does placing a file in a locker remove temporary copies?
No. Inspect staging folders, previews, exports and application caches separately.
Sources for this decision
Links support specific control decisions and do not imply endorsement.