Data Discovery and Documentation

Data Discovery

SDC dataset names, descriptions, data publishers and their contact information (i.e., metadata) are now discoverable in the DOT public data catalog located here: https://data.transportation.gov/browse?tags=secure%20data%20commons%20(sdc).

Making SDC dataset metadata discoverable makes it easier to see what data is in the SDC, and brings SDC into compliance with federal and DOT data policies. Catalog entries are limited to metadata information which is already public, and direct interested parties to follow the existing SDC access request process if interested in accessing the data.

Permission Designation and Metadata Access Control

In order for the Secure Data Commons to reach its full useful potential, some information about the datasets available in the SDC is presented to the general public for discovery. This does not mean that the actual data itself is available to the general public. As the data provider, you can specify the amount of information available by field and by access level. This information can be provided via our Data Provider agreement form (see below) to specify which fields would be available either to the general public, to all credentialed SDC users, or available by explicit permission to SDC users only.

Data Agreement

Purpose of the Agreement

Data agreement is an agreement between SDC and the Data provider. It defines what a data provider will share with data analysts.

All new data providers are required to fill out the below form. Data Providers works with the SDC support Team to sign this Data Agreement prior to completing onboarding.

https://securedatacommons.atlassian.net/wiki/spaces/DESK/pages/1349451792

This agreements addresses the following:

• Dataset Information

• Contextual Description of Dataset

• Data Source

• Size and Frequency of the Dataset

• Data Ingest Requirements

• Data with Personally Identifiable Information (PII)

• Confidential Business Information

• Other Sensitive Data/Restrictions

• Data Use Agreement

• Link to Data Dictionary

• Quality Assurance Documentation

• Permission Designation and Metadata Access Control

Data Documentation

Below is the link for all Data documentation like e.g. Points of Contact (POCs) , Dataset Overview, Data Elements, File level Metadata etc.

https://github.com/USDOT-SDC/Public/blob/master/DOCUMENTATION-template.md