**Data Retention Rules**

Use data retention rules to comply with the Data Protection Act, etc by:
  * destroying unsuccessful loan and membership applications after a set time (default 3 months)
  * redacting personal data from successful applications after a set time (default 18 months)
  * archiving non-personal data from successful applications to allow trend analysis, etc
  * destroying data from all miscellaneous forms after a set time (default 3 months)
  * destroying credit and ID search results after a set time (default 3 months)

Data retention rules are set in three ways:

1. At system level you can set the retention periods to be applied:
  * Long retention period (months until successful applications are redacted and archived)
  * Short retention period (months until search results, unsuccessful applications and misc forms are destroyed)

2. At form level, you select the specific retention rules to apply to completed forms:
  * Credit application - redact, purge and archive
  * Misc form - purge without archive - short period
  * Misc form - purge without archive - long period
  * Retain indefinitely (default)

//note: form level retention rules are applied based on the last time a form was changed or actioned in workflow, applications are treated as unsuccessful if ANY workflow field __starts__ with Decline, Withdraw, W/D or Fail (eg Declined, Withdrawn, W/D Dup will all be included)//

3. At field level, you can define which fields on application forms are treated as personal data
  * [[special_treatment|standard library fields]] marked [PD] are always treated as personal data
  * other fields are treated as personal data if PERSONAL_DATA is added to special treatment
  * [[special_treatment|standard library fields]] marked [PDS] (eg search results) are treated as sensitive personal data and are always redacted after the short retention period has passed //regardless of the form-level rule applied//
  * other fields are treated as sensitive personal data if SENSITIVE_DATA is added to special treatment

//note: sensitive personal data is destroyed when the short retention period has passed from the date the customer submitted their form, not from the date of any credit or ID searches//

Encryption of sensitive personal data (new in release 6.8)
  * Sensitive personal data is now encrypted on the database for additional security in the event of a data breach
  * Encryption is automatically applied to all [PDS] fields, and fields marked SENSITIVE_DATA in special treatment