What is metadata?
Meta, in most usages, means an underlying description, summarising basic information about data. Metadata can be described as an electronic “fingerprint” that allows the information it describes to be identified and sorted.1 These descriptions can include the creator of the file, the name and date of when the file was modified and user-introduced data such as tracked changes, versions, hidden texts and embedded objects.2
Where is metadata stored?
Where metadata relates to databases, it is often stored in tables and fields. Sometimes metadata is stored in a specialist document specifically for metadata, called a data dictionary or metadata repository. Metadata can really be stored anywhere, such as in emails, questionnaires, or spreadsheets.3
What is metadata used for?
The development community can use metadata to see how new systems must be interfaced with older systems.
The data administration community uses metadata to determine how a data model needs to be changed, or how a new data model with fit with an existing data model.
The end user community uses metadata to guide them to what data exists in the system and how to use it in query processing.
Metadata can also be incredibly useful to forensic investigators, helping to create the picture of who, what, when, where, how of computer activity. In saying this, however, metadata can be easy to misinterpret or be missed altogether. Metadata can be altered to intentionally throw-off or confuse an investigator. Even Microsoft rules that govern how and when metadata is created and updated can produce some puzzling results.4
Different types of metadata
Descriptive Metadata
Describes resources for discovery and identification, such as author, title, and key words.
Structural Metadata
Indicates how objects are put together, such as how pages are ordered from chapter to chapter.
Administrative Metadata
Provides information to help manage resources, such as when it was created, file type and who can access it, formed in within several sub-sets of administrative data.5
References
1Garry Kranz. (Anon). What is metadata and how does it work?. Available: https://whatis.techtarget.com/definition/metadata . Last accessed 12th Oct 2021.
2Harvard Law School. (Anon). What is Metadata?. Available: https://hls.harvard.edu/dept/its/what-is-metadata/ . Last accessed 12th Oct 2021.
3Tim Bock. (Anon). What is Metadata?. Available: https://www.displayr.com/what-is-metadata/ . Last accessed 12th Oct 2021.
4Abby Clobridge. (2010). Metadata. Available: https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/computer-science/metadata . Last accessed 12th Oct 2021.
5Marcia Lei Zeng. (Anon). Metadata Types and Functions. Available: https://marciazeng.slis.kent.edu/metadatabasics/types.htm . Last accessed 12th Oct 2021.
