How to Make a True Copy and Verify It
Produce a copy that can replace the original, and know when it cannot.
What a how-to is not
A how-to is SPEQ’s practitioner method, not a procedure. It does not replace your own SOP, it is not a validated approach, and the judgement calls in it belong to your quality unit.
A true copy reproduces the original including its meaning and, where applicable, its metadata, and is verified as complete and accurate. Get it right and the copy can serve where the original would; get it wrong and you have destroyed an original and kept something that does not stand in its place. The common failure is a scan of an electronic record, which drops exactly the metadata that made the original trustworthy.
- 1
Establish what the original actually consists of
For a paper record it is the sheet. For an electronic record it is the data plus the metadata that gives it meaning — audit trail, timestamps, processing parameters. Copy what the record is, not what it looks like when printed.
- 2
Reproduce content and meaning, not appearance
A printout of an electronic record is not a true copy of it, because the audit trail and dynamic content do not survive. If the original is dynamic and can be reprocessed, a static image is a different kind of thing wearing the same numbers.
- 3
Verify the copy against the original
Someone checks that the copy is complete and accurate, and signs to that effect. Verification is the step that makes it a true copy — an unverified reproduction is just a duplicate, whatever it is labelled.
- 4
Label the copy so it identifies itself
Mark it as a true copy with the date, the verifier, and what it is a copy of. An unlabelled copy circulating alongside an original creates a second document nobody can rank against the first.
- 5
Decide the fate of the original deliberately
Where a verified true copy replaces the original, the retention and destruction of that original is authorised and recorded. Destroying an original before its copy is verified is data destruction, and the sequence is the whole safeguard.
- 6
Control copies made for convenience
Working copies made for reference are marked as uncontrolled or for information only. An unmarked photocopy in a folder will eventually be worked from, and it may be a superseded version by then.
- !An electronic record scanned or printed and called a true copy, losing the metadata that gave it meaning.
- !Verification skipped, leaving a duplicate labelled as something it has not been checked to be.
- !The original destroyed before the copy was verified, which is destruction rather than transfer.
- !Convenience copies left unmarked, so a superseded version is eventually worked from.
How to Make a True Copy and Verify It: frequently asked questions
Common questions on make a true copy and verify it.
Is a scan of an electronic record a true copy?
Usually not. Scanning or printing captures the appearance and loses the metadata — audit trail, timestamps, processing parameters — that made the original trustworthy and reprocessable. Where the original is dynamic, a true copy has to preserve that character, which normally means an electronic copy rather than an image.
Who verifies the copy?
Someone competent to compare it against the original, who then signs and dates the verification. It need not be the person who made the copy, and there is an argument that it should not be. The signature is what distinguishes a true copy from a duplicate.
Can the original be destroyed afterwards?
Where a verified true copy exists and retention rules permit, yes — but the sequence matters and the destruction is authorised and recorded. Destroying the original before verification is complete is destruction of a record, and the order of operations is the entire safeguard.