KB calls for more openness on heritage threats after incidents

Ahead of the National Resilient Heritage Action Day (Actiedag Weerbaar Erfgoed) which is taking place on 14 May, the KB National Library of the Netherlands is calling for a collective sense of responsibility for Dutch heritage and the real risks it faces. According to Director General Wilma van Wezenbeek, there needs to be more openness about heritage-related incidents. The KB itself has faced several incidents in recent years. As Van Wezenbeek explains: "The fear that heritage institutions have of publicising sensitive information and of reputational damage makes them reluctant to share information. However, it is precisely that lack of openness which increases our vulnerability." 

Wilma van Wezenbeek, KB Director General, continues: "Of course, the KB does everything it can to prevent such incidents wherever possible and to resolve them when they nevertheless occur. This is the goal of all Dutch heritage institutions. I am, however, convinced that we as heritage institutions will always be chasing the game if we try to counteract such risks on our own and on the quiet. As heritage institutions, our reluctance to be open stems partly from a legitimate fear, given that those who share information about their weaknesses also provide potential perpetrators with valuable information by doing so. However, our lack of openness is also down to our fear of reputational damage, despite it actually increasing the vulnerability of our heritage." 

According to Van Wezenbeek a significant number of opportunities will be missed if heritage institutions do not openly share information on the incidents they have faced or how they have dealt with the threats. "It is precisely when an incident occurs at a heritage institution, that valuable lessons can be learned by others. Of course, we do share knowledge on a peer-to-peer basis in various professional networks. For example, members of the Digital Preservation Coalition (DPC) share information on 'digital failures and losses', to learn from each other how to make ourselves more resilient to digital threats. However, this knowledge exchange could be broader and more open. After all, heritage belongs to all of us. If we are more active when it comes to going public about threats and incidents, we will also put politicians and the public in a better position when it comes to contributing to prevention or resolution." 

Van Wezenbeek suspects that, at the moment, people are still more concerned about reputational damage than public interest. "In the case of the theft perpetrated against us, we have also been reluctant to share information until now. The first priority is, of course, to plug the security leak, but I also believe we didn’t share the news about this theft as widely as we could have." She still believes that it is also important for incidents like this to be discussed openly as soon as the police investigation allows. "Only then, for example, can the public be called upon to help in the investigation. And by the way," she adds, "the ones who really should be ashamed of us falling victim to theft are the perpetrators."