{"id":121,"date":"2026-09-22T09:34:57","date_gmt":"2026-09-22T08:34:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/data-and-information-management\/?p=121"},"modified":"2026-10-02T10:58:04","modified_gmt":"2026-10-02T09:58:04","slug":"the-skeletons-in-your-onedrive","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/data-and-information-management\/2026\/09\/22\/the-skeletons-in-your-onedrive\/","title":{"rendered":"The Skeletons in Your OneDrive"},"content":{"rendered":"

Deleting Personal Data after a specified period of time (outlined in the <\/span>University\u2019s Records Retention Schedule<\/span><\/a>) is a legal requirement, but what if some data slips through the net?<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

All of our OneDrives contain files that are automatically saved and easy to forget about. Each one sucks up the University\u2019s limited and expensive storage and has the potential to cause a headache if the applicable <\/span>Subject Access Request (SAR)<\/span><\/a> is submitted.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

So where do these pesky pockets of Personal Data lie and how can we get rid of them?<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The Hidden Files<\/span><\/h2>\n

Every spreadsheet you send in a Teams message, every report you ask Copilot to proofread, every document you scan on a University printer, is automatically copied into a folder in your OneDrive. The same applies for every email attachment that has ever been sent to you!\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

And this doesn\u2019t even include every screenshot you\u2019ve ever taken and every docum<\/span>ent you\u2019ve ever downloaded.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

All these saved documents and images add up and should be periodically reviewed and potentially deleted (remember that these are just copies and you will have the originals elsewhere, except for downloads and screenshots).<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

So, start the new semester uncluttered and quickly go through your files. Here is how you find them:<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n