# UTC The UNIX timestamp is a way to track time as a running total of seconds. This count starts at the UNIX Epoch on January 1st, 1970 at UTC. Therefore, the UNIX time stamp is merely the number of seconds between a particular date and the UNIX Epoch. For example, on 7:34 PM (UTC) on the 4th of September 2018, 1536089675 seconds have passed since January 1st, 1970 at UTC. The UNIX formatted timestamp is therefore 1536089675. This Unix formatting of UTC point in time technically does not change no matter where you are located on the globe. This is very useful to computer systems for tracking and sorting dated information in dynamic and distributed applications both online and client side. In iSHARE all dates and times MUST be communicated in UTC time. All dates and times MUST be formatted in the Unix timestamp format. --- # Agent Instructions: Querying This Documentation If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation dynamically by asking a question. Perform an HTTP GET request on the current page URL with the `ask` query parameter: ``` GET https://dev.ishare.eu/version-2.2/introduction/specific-technical-standards/utc.md?ask= ``` The question should be specific, self-contained, and written in natural language. The response will contain a direct answer to the question and relevant excerpts and sources from the documentation. Use this mechanism when the answer is not explicitly present in the current page, you need clarification or additional context, or you want to retrieve related documentation sections.