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AC 23.2025

Date: May 2, 2025  

Memorandum to Federal Records Management Contacts: Recordkeeping Requirements for Records Created on Third-Party Messaging Applications

This AC Memo is to remind agency records officers about the Federal Records Act (FRA) rules for the creation, maintenance, and disposal of federal records created on third-party messaging applications, such as Signal, WhatsApp, etc. 

Agencies that conduct business using third-party messaging platforms can use automated tools to comply with the FRA. These tools can capture all messages and manage them categorically or have end-users make message by message determinations. 

The following is an overview of how agencies can manage and dispose of electronic records, including those generated on third-party apps, in compliance with the FRA. 

General Rules Governing Electronic Federal Records

  • Officers or employees of federal agencies may conduct official business using third-party messaging apps.  However, the FRA imposes strict requirements on the use of personal accounts to conduct agency business.  If any agency employee uses a personal account to engage in official business, they must: (1) copy their official account when creating or sending the message, or (2) forward a complete copy of the record to an official account within 20 days. 44 U.S.C. § 2911.
  • Electronic messages created or received in the course of agency business are federal records governed by the FRA. 44 U.S.C. § 3301, 36 C.F.R. § 1220.18. This is true even if the message exchange was on a personal account on a third-party messaging app. Like all federal records, agencies may dispose of these records if authorized by an approved records schedule. 
  • When an agency becomes aware of the unauthorized destruction of an electronic record, they must report the incident to the Office of the Chief Records Officer for the U.S. government. 44 U.S.C. § 3106; 36 C.F.R. § 1230.14.
  • The penalties for the unlawful or accidental removal, defacing, alteration, or destruction of federal records, or the attempt at doing so, include a fine, imprisonment, or both. 36 C.F.R. § 1230.12 (citing 18 U.S.C. §§ 641, 2071). 

Preserving and Disposing of Federal Records Created on Third-Party Messaging Apps

  • If your agency elected to use GRS 6.1 for electronic messages, it must apply the GRS 6.1 retention periods to all records created or received on third-party messaging apps. These messages are within the scope of “electronic messages” as defined in GRS 6.1. As a reminder, those time periods are:
    • Permanent retention for Capstone officials; and 
    • Three to seven year retention for non-Capstone officials, depending on how your agency elected to use GRS 6.1. 
    • Questions regarding your agency’s Capstone implementation can be directed to GRS_Team@nara.gov. 
  • If your agency did not elect to use GRS 6.1 for electronic messages, agency personnel must dispose of them only as permitted by other NARA-approved records schedules, such as agency-specific or General Records Schedules. 44 U.S.C. § 3303a. 

When an Electronic Message May Constitute a Transitory Record

  • GRS 5.2, item 010, authorizes the disposal of transitory records when no longer needed to conduct agency business. Agency officials may not assume that all electronic messages generated on third-party messaging apps are transitory and schedule them for automatic deletion. Some, but not all, electronic messages may meet the definition of a “transitory record.”  
  • Examples of transitory messages include:
    • Electronic messages coordinating schedules, appointments, and events; and
    • System reminders, alerts, bounce backs, and ‘for your information’ messages where the recipient is not required to take any action.
  • To be “transitory,” an electronic message must not:
    • Contain information necessary to adequately and properly document the activities and functions of the agency;
    • Provide documentation of agency decisions and commitments reached orally (person-to-person, phone, video, or in conference);
    • Convey information of value on agency activities if the electronic message adds to a proper understanding of agency operations and responsibilities;
    • Document the formulation and execution of policies and decisions;
    • Denote actions or decisions taken by agency Capstone officials (Capstone officials are defined in GRS 6.1); or 
    • Provide evidence related to fiscal or legal rights and obligations.
  • The auto-delete functions of third party messaging apps may violate federal record-keeping requirements if they do not allow users to identify and preserve federal records prior to their destruction. If agency officials or employees conduct official business on a third party messaging app, they must determine if the electronic messages meet the definition of a transitory record before deleting any messages. This determination is context specific and must be made on a record-by-record basis. 
  • This can be time-consuming and unfeasible. Third-party applications are available that capture messages from Signal, WhatsApp, and other platforms and allow agencies to manage those messages in recordkeeping systems. Use of these third party tools for capture can ensure compliance with the FRA while taking the burden off end-users. 

 

WILLIAM FISCHER 
Chief Records Officer 
for the U.S. Government (Acting)

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