How Hay.chat protects your customers' data#
Last updated
Security at Hay.chat starts with where the data lives: your customer data is stored in the EU and encrypted in transit and at rest. This page covers the practical details, and each section links the legal document behind it. If we haven't done something yet, we tell you that too.
Where your data is hosted#
Customer data is stored in the EU on DigitalOcean, which runs our managed PostgreSQL database, application hosting and backups. Backups are encrypted, taken daily and stored separately, and we test restores.
DigitalOcean's data centres hold ISO 27001, 27017 and 27018 certification. That's DigitalOcean's certification, not ours (see Certifications below).
Encryption#
Every web, API and database connection uses TLS 1.2 or higher. At rest, the database is encrypted at the hosting provider level, and so are backups. Passwords are stored as bcrypt hashes, never in plain text.
Access controls#
Inside your workspace, you decide who sees what. Every user gets a role (owner, admin, member or viewer), and API keys carry only the permissions you give them.
On our side, staff get access only when their job needs it, and access is reviewed every quarter. Server access is SSH with keys, limited to authorised people. The database isn't reachable from the public internet, and firewalls separate the web, application and database layers. When someone leaves, their access is removed within 24 hours.
Each workspace's data is kept apart by its organisation ID, which every database query enforces. Admin actions (logins, configuration changes, data requests, API key use) go into an audit log.
How AI replies are processed#
AI replies are generated by OpenAI, LLC, in the US. Those transfers are covered by the EU Standard Contractual Clauses, and OpenAI's API terms say it doesn't train its models on API data.
We plan to move AI processing to the EU, but that isn't live yet. When it is, this page and the sub-processor list will say so.
How long we keep conversations#
Conversations stay until you delete them, or until a retention period you set in workspace settings runs out. There's no retention period by default.
Once you set one, a daily job anonymizes closed conversations older than that period. Messages and their search embeddings are deleted, and only non-personal details (timestamps, status, channel) are kept so your reports still add up. Anything you put on legal hold is skipped until you lift the hold. The data retention guide walks through the setting.
Retention periods for other data, such as logs and billing records, are in Annex A: Processing Details.
Sub-processors#
Every company that processes customer data for us is listed in Annex C: Subprocessors List, with what it does, where it processes data and the safeguards in place. What we process, for whom and why is in Annex A.
Data Processing Agreement#
Our Data Processing Agreement is part of every customer agreement. It covers your instructions, confidentiality, sub-processors, international transfers, help with data subject requests and deletion at the end of the contract. If there's a personal-data breach, we tell you without undue delay, and our internal target is within 72 hours of confirming it.
Technical and organisational measures#
The full list of security measures under Art. 32 GDPR, from governance and logging to incident response and disaster recovery, is in Annex B: Technical and Organizational Measures.
Reporting a vulnerability#
Found a security issue? Email hello@hay.chat with what you found and the steps to reproduce it. Please don't access or change data that isn't yours while testing.
Service status#
Live status and incident history are on status.hay.chat. To report an outage, email hello@hay.chat.
Certifications#
SOC 2 and ISO 27001: not started.
See it in your own workspace#
Want to check the roles, API key permissions and retention setting for yourself? Start a 30-day free trial. You won't need a credit card.