Most books, articles, theses and reports start life in Microsoft Word or Scrivener. If someone later says your text came after theirs, or a client disputes which version you delivered, the files themselves hold some clues about time. Here is what a Word document and a Scrivener project actually record, why those records are easy to argue with, and what to freeze so the date can be checked by anyone.
Short answer: Word and Scrivener dates come from your own computer and are easy to change. To show a manuscript or report existed before a date, save the exact .docx or a Scrivener backup zip and timestamp it with TimeBinder before you submit or send it. A TimeBind shows that the exact file existed no later than the recorded time and still matches its fingerprint. It doesn’t show who made it or what a court will make of it.
Disclosure: I’m Inna Hall, co-founder of TimeBinder, the file timestamping tool this guide uses. This page is general information, not legal advice.
Table of Contents
What a Word document records
A .docx file is a zip package of XML parts. A few of them hold dates and editing history:
- Core properties (docProps/core.xml): a created date, a last modified date, the “last modified by” name and a revision number. Word shows these under File > Info.
- Extended properties (docProps/app.xml): total editing time in minutes, the application name and version, and page and word counts at the last save.
- Tracked changes and comments. Each insertion, deletion and comment can carry an author name and a date, which is often the most detailed timeline inside the file.
- Revision IDs. Word tags text with random session IDs (rsid values). They can show that text was added in different editing sessions, but they contain no dates.
- Version history if the file lives in OneDrive or SharePoint, kept by Microsoft for the account that owns the file.
What a Scrivener project records
- A folder, not a file. A .scriv project is a folder (shown as a single package on a Mac) containing an XML index (the .scrivx file) and one text file per document in the binder.
- Snapshots. Scrivener can save snapshots of a document, each labelled with the date and time it was taken. They are stored inside the project.
- Automatic backups. Scrivener can keep zipped backups, typically made when you close a project, and keeps a set number of them according to your settings.
- Created and modified dates for each binder item, shown in the inspector.
Why these dates are easy to challenge
Every date above comes from your own computer, and anyone with the file can change or strip document properties (Word’s Inspect Document tool removes many of them deliberately). Created dates are inherited when you build on a template or an older file, so a brand-new chapter can look years old, and a genuine old draft re-saved through a sync tool can look new. Total editing time resets or jumps depending on how the file was copied. None of this makes your records worthless; it means they need an outside anchor.
What to freeze
- The DOCX at each milestone: first full draft, each version sent to an editor, beta reader or client, and the final.
- A PDF export of the same version, so anyone can read it without Word and the layout is fixed.
- The Scrivener project as one zip made once (File > Back Up > Back Up To… can create a zipped copy). Keep that exact zip, because zipping again later produces a different file.
- Notes, outlines and research that show how the work developed. Early material often matters more than the finished text.
A simple routine
- At a milestone, save a copy with the version in the name (for example manuscript-v3-2026-10-29.docx) and export a PDF.
- For Scrivener, make a zipped backup of the project.
- Open TimeBinder and TimeBind the DOCX, PDF and zip together (one Pooled TimeBind covers up to 10 files).
- Before you send anything, check that the file you are attaching is the one you TimeBound. If you changed a comma, TimeBind the new version.
Which plan fits
The free plan gives you 1 Token a month, which is one Pooled TimeBind of up to 10 files. No credit card is required for the free plan. A Pooled TimeBind is usually recorded within 24 to 48 hours, and often sooner, depending on Bitcoin network activity; an ASAP TimeBind costs 3 Tokens and gets its own Bitcoin transaction straight away.
For more milestones, Essential is US$20 a month for 5 Tokens (5 Pooled, or 1 ASAP plus 2 Pooled). Expert is US$50 a month for 15 Tokens (15 Pooled or 5 ASAP), and unused Tokens roll over. Verification is free. See pricing.
What a timestamp does and doesn’t do
TimeBinder anchors each file’s SHA-256 fingerprint to Bitcoin and gives you a Proof of Time Certificate. That is verifiable evidence of when a file existed: it shows the file existed no later than the anchor date, and any later change to the file is detectable. An ASAP TimeBind can be checked directly on the Bitcoin blockchain without relying on TimeBinder; a Pooled TimeBind is verified through TimeBinder. Your file is hashed in your browser and never uploaded.
It doesn’t show who made the work or who owns it, it doesn’t stop copying, and it doesn’t cover a version you didn’t timestamp. Whether someone copied your text depends on access and how much was taken, not just dates. See how to prove a manuscript existed before submitting and manuscript timestamping.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does a Word document record when it was created?
Yes, but not reliably. A .docx file stores a created date, a modified date, a revision number and a total editing time in its document properties. They come from the computer’s clock, they are copied when you base a new file on an old one, and they can be edited or removed.
Why does my new Word file say it was created years ago?
Because the created date travels with the document. If you start from a template or use Save As on an older file, the new file can keep the original created date. That is one reason the property is weak evidence on its own.
Should I timestamp the Scrivener project or a compiled file?
Both. Zip the .scriv project once and timestamp the zip, and timestamp the compiled DOCX or PDF you actually send. The compiled file is the one an agent or publisher will have, so it is the easiest to match.
Will opening the document change its fingerprint?
Opening alone usually doesn’t, but any save does, including autosave and cloud sync rewriting the file. Keep the frozen copy read-only and work on a separate copy.
Plan details were checked against timebinder.io/pricing on 29 October 2026.
