Data quality
Request a data correction
If a record on ZEPRA looks wrong, tell us. A register that cannot be corrected is not worth trusting.
Who can request a correction
Anyone. You do not need to be from the institution concerned, and you do not need an account. Requests from the responsible institution are acted on fastest, because that institution is the source of record.
What to include
- The ZEPRA identifier of the record — it appears at the top of every project page, in the form ZEP-YYYY-NNNNNN — or its web address.
- The field that is wrong.
- What it should say.
- Where that can be checked — a published document, a page on the institution's site, or an official reference.
The last point matters most. ZEPRA cannot replace one unverified figure with another; a correction has to be traceable to something.
What happens next
- You receive an acknowledgement with a reference immediately.
- A data steward checks the record against its original source.
- Where the source supports the correction, the record is corrected. The previous value stays in the record's change history with the reason and the date.
- Where the source itself appears to be wrong, ZEPRA raises it with the publishing institution. The record is marked disputed on its own page while that is resolved — it is not quietly removed.
- Where a correction cannot be supported, you are told why.
Corrections to financial and status fields go through a second reviewer before they take effect, so no single person can change a published figure alone.
What ZEPRA cannot do
- Change a record in an institution's own system. ZEPRA holds a copy; the institution holds the record of account.
- Remove a record because it is unflattering. A published record that is accurate stays published.
- Publish a figure that no source supports.