Data Retention
Policy last updated: December 10, 2018
Data in Dispatch is not kept indefinitely. Different types of data are retained on different schedules. Data is either considered Online or Archived. Online data is available through the GUI and API while archived data is can only be retrieved by Dispatch Support through alternative mechanisms.
Archiving old data is planned to be executed once a year. Dispatch users will be notified when the process is scheduled.
Schedule
| Data Type | Online | Archived |
|---|---|---|
| Analytics | 10 years for summaries, Current year + 2 years for details | N/A |
| Assets | ∞ | N/A |
| Batch Details | 10 years | N/A |
| Logs | 45 days | 3 years |
| Message Artifacts | 1 year | N/A |
| Message Content | Depends | Depends |
| Message Details | Current year + 2 years | 10 years |
| Message Search Metadata | 2 years | N/A |
| Other | ∞ | N/A |
| Twilio Logs | 30 days | N/A |
All time expressed after the time the batch of messages were sent.
Analytics
Analytics encompasses tracking statistics about the activity pertaining to campaigns or communications over a period of time. Analytic summary data is retained for 10 years and details pertaining to link clicks, opens, social shares, user/device agents and interaction timelines are retained for two years.
Assets
Assets are kept on the storage portion of the content delivery network indefinitely. Once an assets is loaded to an edge location, it is cached there for 24 hours. If it is not accessed within 24 hours, it will expire and a subsequent request for it will need to retrieve it from the storage layer.
Batch Details
Batches encompass the sending of messages for a communication. Current policy is to retain Batch details for 10 years. There is not currently a schedule in effect for archiving batch data.
Logs
Retention of detailed logs of all actions taken in Dispatch follow the standard ITS-AIS logging retention schedule. Logs are kept online for 45 days before being moved to an archive location. Archived logs are kept for three years.
Message Artifacts
Message Artifacts are the PDFs generated for Print communications. These are retained for one year after the batch is sent. After one year, the artifact is purged. If you need keep a PDF artifact longer, please add a secondary destination for a FTP Server or the Files Service which have their own independent retention policies.
Message Content
Message content retention is determined by how the Client or Campaign is configured. Generally, an exact copy of a message is not retained after a message is sent unless there is a reason for your own data retention needs. If your client is setup so that message content retention is disabled, you can override that setting on each campaign. For clients and campaigns were message content retention is enabled, a corresponding schedule is set for how long that content is retained. When a message's content is either not retained or purged, the message content can be recreated from a saved snapshot of the template and member data when the message is viewed in Dispatch. See Message Content Retention for more details.
Message Details
Details relating to specific messages are retained and made accessible through Dispatch's web interface and API for two years after the batch is sent. After two years message data is moved to an archived location and kept for eight more years. Along with message details, corresponding records for link clicks, callbacks, and social shares are also archived.
Message Search Metadata
Searchable indexes of messages metadata is retained for 15 months after the date the message is sent.
Other
(e.g. Populations, Templates, Campaigns, Communications, Suppression Lists, Signatures, etc.)
All other configuration objects in Dispatch are retained indefinitely.
Twilio Logs
Twilio is the telephony vendor that Dispatch utilizes for sending SMS messages and placing voice calls. Twilio keeps 30 days worth of logs and message data for debugging and troubleshooting. This data is only accessible to Dispatch Support. It is possible to configure your Twilio subaccount to not retain any log data if that is necessary for compliance reasons. Please consult with Dispatch Support if you have that need.