Data Retention
Holding data longer than necessary is a compliance risk. TruePrivacy helps you define retention rules, automate deletion, and prove compliance with retention schedules.
Why teams choose Data Retention
Policy Engine
Define retention rules by data type, category, purpose, and regulatory requirement.
Automated Deletion
Schedule automated deletion jobs across integrated systems when data ages out.
Legal Hold
Pause deletion for specific data subject records under legal hold.
Deletion Certificates
Generate certificates of deletion as evidence for regulators and data subjects.
Detailed Capabilities
A closer look at what Data Retention does inside TruePrivacy.
Visual Retention Policy Builder
Define retention rules using a visual policy builder — specify data categories, processing purposes, legal hold criteria, and the retention period for each combination. Rules are expressed in plain language for easy review by legal teams.
Automated Deletion Scheduling
When data reaches its retention deadline, TruePrivacy automatically schedules deletion across all connected systems. Deletion jobs run on a configurable schedule with status tracking and confirmation receipts.
Legal Hold Management
Place specific data subject records or data categories under legal hold with a single click, pausing automated deletion while litigation or regulatory investigation is ongoing. Legal holds are lifted explicitly and the pause period is documented.
Deletion Certificates
Generate certificates of deletion as evidence that data was deleted from all in-scope systems on schedule. Certificates include the data categories deleted, systems involved, timestamps, and confirmation receipts from each system.
Cross-System Propagation
A single retention policy applies across all connected systems. When data expires, deletion instructions propagate to every system holding that data simultaneously — CRMs, databases, backups, and archives.
Retention Compliance Reporting
Dashboards show retention policy coverage across your data inventory, upcoming deletion jobs, overdue deletions, and legal hold status. Reports provide evidence of systematic retention compliance for regulators.
How It Works
From setup to ongoing compliance in a few straightforward steps.
Define Retention Policies
Build retention rules for each data category and processing purpose. Align rules with your legal obligations — GDPR minimization, DPDP storage limitation, contract retention requirements, and tax record obligations.
Map Policies to Data
Link retention policies to the data categories in your inventory. TruePrivacy calculates the deletion date for each piece of data based on its collection date and the applicable policy.
Execute Automated Deletion
Deletion jobs run automatically when data reaches its deadline. Each job sends deletion commands to all systems holding the relevant data and confirms completion from each system.
Generate Evidence
Access deletion job history, generate deletion certificates for specific data subjects or categories, and pull compliance reports showing your overall retention policy adherence for regulatory submissions.
What's included
- Visual retention policy builder
- Automated deletion scheduling
- Legal hold management
- Deletion certificates
- Cross-system deletion propagation
- Retention compliance reporting
Data Retention
Define, enforce, and audit data retention policies across all your systems.
Try it freeFrequently Asked Questions
Common questions about Data Retention in TruePrivacy.
GDPR Article 5(1)(e) requires that personal data be kept in a form that permits identification for no longer than is necessary for the purposes for which it is processed. This means you must define retention periods for each processing purpose and delete data when it is no longer needed for that purpose. TruePrivacy's policy engine is designed to implement this principle systematically across your entire data inventory.
It is common for data to be subject to both a deletion obligation (GDPR minimization) and a retention requirement (legal, tax, or contractual). TruePrivacy's policy engine supports 'longest rule wins' logic — retention continues until all applicable obligations are satisfied. Conflicting rules are flagged for review by your legal team.
TruePrivacy integrates with backup systems where APIs are available. For systems where backup deletion cannot be automated, TruePrivacy creates a manual task for your infrastructure team when a deletion job completes in the live system. The manual task tracks confirmation that backup deletion has also been completed.
Yes. Deletion certificates document exactly what was deleted, from which systems, at what time, and who authorized the deletion. Each certificate includes confirmation receipts from connected systems. TruePrivacy retains deletion certificate records indefinitely so they are available for regulatory investigations years after the deletion occurred.
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