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Retention Audit Trail

Firmly maintains a complete record of all data removed by retention policies. This documentation is essential for SEC compliance, investor due diligence, and demonstrating your data governance practices.

Why Retention Audit Trails Matter in Investment Management

When investment data is deleted, you need to prove:

  • The deletion was authorized — It followed your documented retention policy
  • The deletion was complete — The data was actually removed, not just hidden
  • The deletion was documented — You have a permanent record of what was deleted and when

What Gets Recorded

Deletion Records

Every resource deleted by retention policy is permanently documented, including:

  • What type of data was deleted (conversation, document, audit log)
  • When the deletion occurred
  • Which firm and fund owned the data
  • When the data was originally created
  • Which retention policy triggered the deletion

Retention Job History

Each retention cleanup execution is logged with:

  • When the job ran and how long it took
  • Counts of each data type deleted and archived
  • How many resources were skipped due to legal holds
  • Any errors that occurred

Investment Compliance Reporting

SEC Examination Response

  • Queryable deletion history — Filter by date range, data type, or fund
  • Legal hold verification — Evidence that data under legal hold was preserved
  • Policy enforcement proof — Retention history shows consistent execution

Investor Due Diligence

  • Demonstrating data governance — Show institutional investors your retention practices
  • Policy documentation — Evidence that retention aligns with stated policies

Internal Compliance

  • Annual review — Review retention history for failures or anomalies
  • Legal hold compliance — Verify that hold counts align with active legal matters

Investment Scenarios

Responding to SEC Examination

When SEC examiners request evidence of your data retention practices, you can export retention history showing consistent policy enforcement, provide deletion records for the examination period, and demonstrate that legal holds were respected.

Investor Due Diligence

When institutional investors conduct operational due diligence, you can demonstrate your data governance practices by showing retention policies, deletion documentation, and legal hold procedures.

Annual Compliance Review

For your internal compliance program, review retention history for failures or anomalies, verify that legal hold counts align with active legal matters, and confirm deletion volumes align with expectations.

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