CoreTrustSeal
Overview
CoreTrustSeal is the international community-based certification framework for trustworthy digital data repositories, launched in September 2017 through the merger of the Data Seal of Approval (DSA, Netherlands) and the World Data System (WDS) Seal. Its 16 Core Requirements address mission and scope, licences, continuity of access, confidentiality and ethics, organisational infrastructure, digital object management, and preservation planning. Repositories seeking certification submit a self-assessment against the Requirements, which is then reviewed by a board of volunteer assessors drawn from previously certified institutions. Over 160 repositories have been certified worldwide. Requirements are reviewed and renewed every two to three years; the current cycle runs 2023 to 2025, with guidance for 2026 to 2028 in development. The Requirements were originally developed through an RDA Working Group on Repository Audit and Certification and are aligned with ISO 16363, the formal audit standard for digital preservation.
Certification
The certification process is open to all data repositories regardless of domain, country, or size. Repositories apply via the CoreTrustSeal online portal, provide responses and evidence for each of the 16 Requirements, and receive peer review from trained assessors. Certified repositories display the CoreTrustSeal badge and are listed in the public registry at coretrustseal.org. Certification does not require implementation of new standards or heavy infrastructure investment; the focus is on demonstrating existing good practice. Certification is recognised by funders including the EC Horizon Europe programme, which recommends certified repositories for data management plan compliance.
Connections
- relatedTo: FAIR Principles (the 16 Requirements are explicitly aligned with FAIR data principles and support their implementation)
- relatedTo: RDA (Requirements developed through the RDA Working Group on Repository Audit and Certification)
- relatedTo: re3data (re3data displays CoreTrustSeal certification status in repository records)
Resources
- https://www.coretrustseal.org
- https://www.coretrustseal.org/why-certification/requirements/ (the 16 Requirements)
- https://amt.coretrustseal.org/certificates/ (certified repositories registry)
- https://www.coretrustseal.org/about/history/ (history and origins)
- https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.7051011 (Requirements 2023-2025, DOI)