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Definition: Chain of Custody (Migration)

Chain of Custody refers to the chronological documentation or audit trail showing the end-to-end sequence of control, transfer, analysis, and disposition of data during a migration project. It ensures that every step the data takes, from extraction at the source to ingestion at the target, is tracked and auditable.

Key Aspects in the Helix Context:

  • Purpose: To guarantee data integrity, provide transparency, meet compliance requirements, and ensure accountability throughout the migration lifecycle.
  • Scope: Covers all phases including extraction, movement to migration servers (like MARS Migration Server), transformation/processing, transport to target systems, and final ingestion.
  • Method: Implemented through detailed logging, unique identifiers (GUIDs), hash checks, byte counts, and reconciliation audits at each transition point within the migration workflow.
  • Security: Can be combined with end-to-end encryption for data both in motion and at rest to further secure the chain.