What does a message timestamp actually represent?¶

A message timestamp records a particular system event or display value, which may be creation, provider acceptance, delivery, display, read status, local storage or export. It is not automatically the moment the sender composed or transmitted the words.

Source determines meaning¶

A screenshot shows application presentation; a provider return may use server events in UTC; an export may convert to device local time; an extraction can expose stored values hidden from the user. Edited, forwarded or restored messages may carry several times.

Offline devices can separate composition from transmission. A service may display the earlier creation time or later send time according to its design.

Preserve before normalising¶

Record every original value, field name, source, zone or offset, device clock settings and capture or export time. Keep converted values separately with a reproducible method.

Use stable message IDs and sequence to connect stages. If the event represented by a timestamp cannot be established, describe it as the time displayed or stored by that source rather than a definitive sending time.