Information systems as a source of official information (on the example of the Russian Federation)

Abstract

The article analyzes the role of state information systems in building a democratic information society. The information available through such information systems is official information. Citizens trust such information, plan and base their actions on it. Meanwhile, unlike special state portals, the information systems of individual state and municipal bodies are not always distinguished by high quality of the data. Even if some information is actually present in the system, it may not be detected by a simple search query. This is misleading users. To solve this problem, technical, organizational and legal measures are needed. The authors formulate a presumption of authenticity of official information. A citizen has the right to rely on official information as a reliable one, his behavior based on such information should be regarded as conscientious. A classification of state information systems on the legal significance of the information contained in them is proposed. The authors make some proposals on the development of international legislation on guarantees of access to government information.