Data has never been more prevalent and important in so many applications. The need to achieve operational efficiencies, not to mention securing safety standards and guaranteeing regulatory compliance, makes accurate and reliable data essential in many sectors. For example, in food storage, pharmaceuticals and cold chain logistics, regulators require the maintenance of temperatures within safe limits for sensitive products. Trustworthy data is needed to assess compliance during a journey or over time in storage facilities. But how can we be sure that our data is correct and suffers no loss or alteration between collection and processing? This question is paramount for those invested in monitoring and assessing processes and conditions and raises the question of inviolate data.

What is inviolate data?
Inviolate - adjective

• free from violation, injury, desecration, or outrage.
• undisturbed; untouched.
• unbroken.
• not infringed.

Something to be ‘inviolate’ means it cannot be changed. It remains safe and unharmed by external factors or interventions. In the case of data, this means there has been no, alteration and that Inviolate data remains the same as it was at its point of generation, through to its destination, where it can then be assessed for safety and regulatory compliance or processed in other forms of analysis.

Why is inviolate data so important in the cold chain?
Inviolate data is important in the cold chain because of the need for accuracy and reliability in the temperature conditions it represents. If data is inviolate, you can be sure that no one has tampered with the data for whatever reason. Such reliability is crucial for temperature data loggers, often used to monitor or record storage conditions where temperature or humidity changes can ruin a product. In the case of pharmaceuticals or food, this could make items unsafe or ineffective.

Inviolate data also helps to guarantee regulatory compliance. Unsuitable storage conditions can make a product unsaleable by law. Unfortunately, that means it is hard to rule out entirely the temptation to alter or delete non-compliant data. For example, associations like the FDA (Food & Drug Administration) in the USA legally require stored environmental data to be inviolate, such that it cannot be altered by 'ordinary means'. This has implications for UK businesses selling to the USA and American businesses.
With inviolate data, tampering is simply impossible because the data is encrypted to prevent it from being changed once logged. This makes inspections and audits simpler and quicker, helping to bring peace of mind and maintain a business reputation.

Inviolate temperature data loggers from Signatrol
Signatrol offer a range of temperature data loggers for food and beverages, pharmaceuticals, medical applications, and logistics, where accurate and compliant storage and handling conditions are essential. We're the premier experts in humidity and temperature data loggers in the UK and have now produced the Tempmate-S1-PRO for applications requiring extra reassurance. The Tempmate-S1 is a small, food-safe unit that can be placed in shipments to generate inviolate data throughout the journey. On reaching its destination, the data can be offloaded via USB to generate a PDF report showing logged temperatures for the entire period.
To learn more about our temperature data logger products and how they can help preserve data integrity in your application, please call +44 1684 299 399, or email us.