{"id":2553,"date":"2025-08-01T15:17:49","date_gmt":"2025-08-01T14:17:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/archivesconseil.be\/archives-endommagees-prevenir-les-risques-pour-proteger-linformation\/"},"modified":"2026-02-03T15:46:34","modified_gmt":"2026-02-03T14:46:34","slug":"damaged-archives-preventing-risks-to-protect-information","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/archivesconseil.be\/en\/damaged-archives-preventing-risks-to-protect-information\/","title":{"rendered":"Damaged Archives: Preventing Risks to Protect Information"},"content":{"rendered":"<section class=\"l-section wpb_row height_auto width_full\"><div class=\"l-section-h i-cf\"><div class=\"g-cols vc_row via_flex valign_middle type_boxes\"><div class=\"vc_col-sm-6 wpb_column vc_column_container has_bg_color stretched\"><div class=\"vc_column-inner us_custom_4c32c512\"><div class=\"wpb_wrapper\"><\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"vc_col-sm-6 wpb_column vc_column_container has_bg_color\"><div class=\"vc_column-inner us_custom_0db20381\"><div class=\"wpb_wrapper\"><div class=\"wpb_text_column\"><div class=\"wpb_wrapper\"><h1 data-start=\"322\" data-end=\"385\">Damaged Archives: Preventing Risks to Protect Information<\/h1>\n<\/div><\/div><div class=\"w-separator size_small\"><\/div><div class=\"wpb_text_column\"><div class=\"wpb_wrapper\"><p>In law firms, medical clinics, notary offices, or SMEs, paper archives play a crucial role. They contain sensitive, confidential, or legally binding information. Yet their preservation is often neglected, exposing the documents to risks of sometimes irreversible deterioration.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/section><section class=\"l-section wpb_row height_auto\"><div class=\"l-section-h i-cf\"><div class=\"g-cols vc_row via_flex valign_top type_boxes reversed\"><div class=\"vc_col-sm-12 wpb_column vc_column_container topbotextra\"><div class=\"vc_column-inner\"><div class=\"wpb_wrapper\"><div class=\"w-separator size_medium\"><\/div><div class=\"wpb_text_column\"><div class=\"wpb_wrapper\"><h2>The Silent Enemies of Paper<\/h2>\n<p>The causes of deterioration are numerous and often invisible in daily life:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Humidity: promotes mold growth and makes documents illegible.<\/li>\n<li>Too dry temperature: weakens the paper, making it brittle.<\/li>\n<li>Light (UV, fluorescent): causes yellowing and fading of inks.<\/li>\n<li>Insects and rodents: can physically destroy documents.<\/li>\n<li>Pollution and dust: accelerate the corrosion of paper fibers.<\/li>\n<li>Improper handling: tears, folds, grease stains\u2026 all preventable damage.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>These factors, alone or combined, can render a document unusable. In some cases, this can have serious legal or administrative consequences.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2>A concrete example: the cancelled trial in Mons<\/h2>\n<p>In September 2025, a trial at the Mons court had to be cancelled. Cause: archives stored in a water-infiltrated room became illegible and overrun with mold. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.rtbf.be\/article\/palais-de-justice-en-ruine-quand-l-etat-abandonne-magistrats-et-citoyens-11588861\">This case, reported by RTBF<\/a>, clearly illustrates the risks associated with poor preservation.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2>Best Practices to Adopt<\/h2>\n<p>To prevent such situations, here are some simple but essential recommendations:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Humidity: maintain levels between 30 and 40%.<\/li>\n<li>Temperature: ideally between 18 and 20 \u00b0C.<\/li>\n<li>Light protection: use opaque containers such as our archive boxes (link to \u201cbox supply\u201d page).<\/li>\n<li>Pest control: install traps or repellents.<\/li>\n<li>Regular cleaning: limit dust and associated risks.<\/li>\n<li>Respectful handling: train staff on the value of documents and proper handling procedures.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div><\/div><div class=\"w-separator size_medium\"><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/section><section class=\"l-section wpb_row us_custom_f4e9e5ae height_auto\"><div class=\"l-section-h i-cf\"><div class=\"g-cols vc_row via_flex valign_top type_boxes\"><div class=\"vc_col-sm-6 wpb_column vc_column_container has_bg_color\"><div class=\"vc_column-inner us_custom_e44e3a79\"><div class=\"wpb_wrapper\"><div class=\"w-separator size_small\"><\/div><div class=\"wpb_text_column us_custom_df5f4c97 has_text_color\"><div class=\"wpb_wrapper\"><h3>Archives Conseil: Preserve, Secure, Transmit<\/h3>\n<p>At Archives Conseil, we support institutions, companies, and communities in implementing tailored preservation solutions. From auditing premises to providing specialized containers and raising staff awareness, our approach aims to prevent risks and ensure the longevity of paper documents.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><div class=\"w-separator size_small\"><\/div><div class=\"w-btn-wrapper align_none\"><a class=\"w-btn us-btn-style_4\" title=\"Contact\" href=\"https:\/\/archivesconseil.be\/en\/contact\/\"><span class=\"w-btn-label\">CONTACT US<\/span><\/a><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"vc_col-sm-6 wpb_column vc_column_container has_bg_color stretched\"><div class=\"vc_column-inner us_custom_69a0e83a\"><div class=\"wpb_wrapper\"><div class=\"wpb_text_column us_custom_999644ab has_text_color\"><div class=\"wpb_wrapper\"><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/section><div class=\"vc_col-sm-1 vc_col-lg-3 vc_col-md-12 vc_col-xs-12 wpb_column vc_column_container\"><div class=\"vc_column-inner\"><div class=\"wpb_wrapper\"><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Damaged Archives: Preventing Risks to Protect Information In law firms, medical clinics, notary offices, or SMEs, paper archives play a crucial role. They contain sensitive, confidential, or legally binding information. Yet their preservation is often neglected, exposing the documents to risks of sometimes irreversible deterioration. The Silent Enemies of Paper The causes of deterioration are...","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2550,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[26],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2553","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-storage-condition"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v26.2 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Preserving Archives: Best Practices and Solutions | Archives Conseils<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Prevent deterioration of your paper archives with expert advice and solutions from Archives Conseil. 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