Data retention settings

EmailConnect provides flexible data retention controls to help you balance data availability with privacy requirements and storage costs. Configure these settings in retention settings.

Understanding data retention

Data retention determines how long EmailConnect stores:

Processed email metadata
Webhook delivery logs
Failed webhook attempts
Email processing history

Why data retention matters

Privacy compliance

Meet GDPR requirements for data minimization
Automatically delete old customer data
Reduce liability from storing unnecessary information

Storage optimization

Lower storage costs by removing old data
Improve query performance on active data
Keep your account lean and efficient

Business requirements

Maintain audit trails for the required period
Balance debugging needs with privacy
Comply with industry-specific regulations

Configuring retention settings

Access retention settings

Navigate to Settings (/settings)
Click on the "Retention" tab
Choose your retention period
Save changes

Available retention periods

Free and Maker plans:

1 hour default

Business plan:

24 hours default
Configurable up to 30 days

Platform plan:

24 hours default
Configurable up to 365 days
Automated export options before deletion

What gets retained

Email metadata

Subject and recipient
Processing timestamp
Size and attachment count
Delivery status

Webhook logs

Delivery attempts and timestamps
HTTP response codes
Response times
Retry attempts

Email content

We do store the parsed email — the text body, the HTML body, and any attachments small enough to be delivered inline — for the length of your retention window, and no longer. Larger attachments are stored as files, in our EU bucket or in your own if you've configured one.

We're explicit about this because it's the thing people most need to know, and because the honest answer is better than it sounds:

On Free and Maker the window is one hour, full stop — it's the maximum, not just the default. An email that arrives at 09:00 is gone by 10:00, and there is nothing left to subpoena, leak, or breach. Business and Platform default to 24 hours and let you set your own (up to 30 days and 365 days respectively) — so the longer window is a choice you make, not one we impose.
On Business and Platform you can delete it the moment you're done with it. Process the webhook, extract what you need, then call DELETE /api/v1/emails/{messageId} with an API key carrying the emails:delete scope. That shrinks the window from hours to seconds, under your control rather than ours — it is the same lever as custom retention, just applied per-email.
Platform plans can switch it off entirely. In data residency mode, the message body and attachments are never written to our database — the email passes straight through to your endpoint. We keep routing metadata: the message ID, timestamps, delivery status, the recipient, and the subject line. The sender address is masked. So "metadata only" is exactly right, and the subject is part of that metadata — if your subjects themselves carry sensitive data, that is the one thing to know before you rely on this.

The reason we store it at all is that it's what makes the product debuggable: it's how the logs show you what actually arrived, and how replay can re-send a delivery your endpoint missed. Once retention expires, both of those stop working for that email — which is the trade, and it's yours to make.

What we never store

The raw message after parsing — it's read, converted to JSON, and discarded
Anything at all, once your retention window has passed

Retention lifecycle

Day 0: Email received

Email processed and webhook triggered
Metadata stored in database
Delivery logged

During retention period

Full access to logs and history
Debugging information available
Retry options for failed webhooks

After retention period

Data automatically deleted
No manual intervention needed
Deletion is permanent and irreversible

Changing retention settings

Immediate effect

New emails follow new retention period
Existing data maintains original retention

Retroactive changes

Shortening retention doesn't delete existing data immediately
Data expires based on original retention setting
Extending retention only affects new data

Compliance considerations

GDPR compliance

Set shortest practical retention period
Document your retention policy
Ensure automatic deletion works

Industry regulations

Financial services: May require longer retention
Healthcare: Check HIPAA requirements
E-commerce: Consider payment dispute periods

Data subject requests

Retention settings don't override deletion requests
Manual deletion available via API
Contact support for bulk deletions

Monitoring data usage

Your current retention setting is shown in Settings → Retention, and the emails still inside your window are visible in your logs — once an email leaves the logs, it has been deleted.

Programmatic deletion

Business and Platform plans can programmatically delete emails via the API once they've been processed. This further reduces your data exposure window — process the email, extract what you need, then immediately delete the stored copy. It belongs to the same family as custom retention, which is why it starts at the same tier.

The call is DELETE /api/v1/emails/{messageId}, and the API key must carry the emails:delete scope. See API keys & integrations for authentication details.

Faq

Can I recover deleted data?

No, deletion is permanent. Plan retention accordingly.

Does retention affect webhook delivery?

No, webhooks are delivered immediately. Retention only affects historical logs.

Can I export data before deletion?

Yes, use the API to export data. Platform plans have automated export options.

How precise is deletion timing?

The deletion job runs every 10 minutes, so data is removed within about 10 minutes of your retention window expiring — not at the exact second, but never long after.

Configure your retention settings thoughtfully to balance business needs, compliance requirements, and cost optimization.