Last Updated: May 1, 2026
This Data Processing Agreement ("DPA") forms an integral part of the Archivis Terms of Service ("Terms") between the party named as "Customer" in the Terms ("Customer" or "Controller") and Archivis, Inc. ("Archivis," "Company," or "Processor") and sets out the parties' respective obligations when Customer personal data is processed by Archivis in relation to the Services performed by Archivis on Customer's behalf pursuant to the Terms. The purpose of the DPA is to ensure such processing is conducted in accordance with applicable laws and with due respect for the rights and freedoms of individuals whose personal data is processed.
This Data Processing Agreement ("Agreement") forms part of the Contract for Services ("Principal Agreement") between the Customer and:
Archivis, Inc.
(the "Data Processor")
(together as the "Parties")
Unless otherwise defined herein, capitalized terms and expressions used in this Agreement shall have the following meaning:
The terms "Commission," "Controller," "Data Subject," "Member State," "Personal Data," "Personal Data Breach," "Processing," and "Supervisory Authority" shall have the same meaning as in the GDPR, and their cognate terms shall be construed accordingly.
2.1.1 Archivis acknowledges that it may receive Customer Confidential Information and Customer Personal Data in connection with the Services.
2.1.2 Archivis shall:
2.1.3 The confidentiality obligations shall survive termination of this Agreement for a period of seven (7) years.
Archivis shall:
2.2.1 comply with all applicable Data Protection Laws in the Processing of Customer Personal Data;
2.2.2 not Process Customer Personal Data other than on the Customer's documented instructions;
2.2.3 ensure all employees, contractors, and writers handling Personal Data or Confidential Information are bound by legally enforceable confidentiality agreements;
2.2.4 provide adequate training to all personnel handling Personal Data on data protection requirements and procedures;
2.2.5 be held liable for any processing activities conducted outside the scope of documented instructions.
The Customer instructs Archivis to process Customer Personal Data for the following purposes:
Taking into account the state of the art, the costs of implementation and the nature, scope, context and purposes of Processing as well as the risk of varying likelihood and severity for the rights and freedoms of natural persons, Archivis shall implement appropriate technical and organizational measures to ensure a level of security appropriate to that risk.
Archivis implements and maintains the following enterprise-grade security measures:
In assessing the appropriate level of security, Archivis shall take account in particular of the risks that are presented by Processing, in particular from a Personal Data Breach.
Archivis shall assist Customer in fulfilling consumer rights requests under applicable U.S. Privacy Laws, including:
4.2.1 Archivis warrants that it will not:
4.2.2 Archivis shall provide the same level of privacy protection as required by applicable U.S. Privacy Laws.
For transfers of personal data from the U.S. to other jurisdictions, Archivis shall implement appropriate safeguards including standard contractual clauses or other legally recognized transfer mechanisms.
5.1.1 Customer retains full ownership of all biographical content from the moment it is provided to or created within the platform, regardless of subscription or payment status, including:
5.1.2 To the extent Archivis or its AI-assisted features contribute any output incorporated into the Customer's biography, Archivis hereby assigns to Customer all right, title, and interest in such output.
5.2.1 Archivis retains ownership of:
5.2.2 Archivis may use general knowledge, skills, and experience gained from providing Services, provided such use does not violate confidentiality obligations or disclose Customer Confidential Information.
5.3.1 Customer grants Archivis a limited, non-exclusive license to:
5.3.2 Upon publication, Customer grants Archivis a perpetual, non-exclusive license to display the published biography on archivis.org unless Customer requests unpublication or deletion.
Archivis is authorized to engage the following Subprocessors:
| Subprocessor | Purpose | Location |
|---|---|---|
| Amazon Web Services (AWS) | Infrastructure, database, file storage | United States (us-east-2) |
| OpenAI L.P. | AI-assisted biography generation | United States |
| Stripe, Inc. | Payment processing | United States |
| Google Workspace | Email communications (SMTP) | United States |
Archivis shall ensure that all Subprocessors:
Archivis shall inform Customer of any intended changes to Subprocessors with at least 30 days' prior written notice via email and website announcement. Customer may object to such changes within 14 days if the changes do not meet required data protection standards.
This Section 7 applies only where the Customer is an organization that has purchased an Institutional Subscription (as defined in Section 1.1.12). It supplements, and does not replace, the other provisions of this Agreement.
7.2.1 The Parties acknowledge that, in the context of an Institutional Subscription, the Customer (institution) and Archivis act as independent Controllers, each in respect of distinct categories of Personal Data:
7.2.2 The institution does not act as Controller, joint Controller, or Processor in respect of biographical content authored by its members. Archivis does not disclose biographical content, drafts, or questionnaire responses to the institution under any circumstances.
7.3.1 Each Institutional Subscription is administered through a single administrator email account designated by the institution at the time of subscription.
7.3.2 The institution is responsible for the security of the administrator account credentials and for all actions taken through the administrator account, including invitations and member-seat assignments.
7.3.3 The administrator may view: the list of members assigned to seats (by email address); seat-assignment status (active, removed); and aggregate seat usage. The administrator may not view biographical content, drafts, photographs, audio recordings, or questionnaire responses of any member.
7.4.1 When a member is invited to or assigned a seat, the institution provides the member's email address to Archivis as an instruction to grant Premium and publishing access to that member.
7.4.2 When a member is removed from the institution, or the institution's subscription ends, the member's seat is deactivated. The member's user account, biographical content, and any biographies they have published remain under their own control as an individual user, subject to the Archivis Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.
7.4.3 Removal from an institutional subscription does not delete the member's account or content. A member may separately request account or content deletion in accordance with Section 11.2.
Where a member exercises Data Subject rights (access, deletion, correction, portability) in respect of their biographical content, Archivis responds directly to the member as the Controller of that data and is not required to involve or notify the institution. Where a request relates to roster or billing data Controlled by the institution, Archivis will refer the member to the institution.
Archivis shall assist Customer in fulfilling its obligations to respond to requests to exercise Data Subject rights under applicable Data Protection Laws, including both GDPR and U.S. Privacy Laws.
Archivis shall:
8.2.1 Promptly notify Customer within 5 business days if it receives a request from a Data Subject;
8.2.2 Not respond to that request except on the documented instructions of Customer or as required by applicable laws;
8.2.3 Provide Customer with tools to export their complete data (biography text, photos, questionnaire responses) in machine-readable format (JSON + ZIP);
8.2.4 Process deletion requests within 30 days, with backup purging within 90 days.
Archivis shall provide reasonable assistance to the Customer with any data protection impact assessments, and prior consultations with Supervising Authorities or other competent data privacy authorities, which Customer reasonably considers to be required by Article 35 or 36 of the GDPR or equivalent provisions of any other Data Protection Law.
Archivis shall notify Customer at the email address associated with Customer's account without undue delay and in any event within 72 hours upon becoming aware of a Personal Data Breach affecting Customer Personal Data.
Such notification shall contain:
Archivis shall cooperate with Customer and take reasonable commercial steps as directed by Customer to assist in the investigation, mitigation and remediation of each such Personal Data Breach.
| Data Type | Retention Period | Reason |
|---|---|---|
| Active Account Data | While account active | Service provision |
| Published Biographies | Indefinite (unless deleted by customer) | Public archival purpose |
| Unpublished Drafts | Until published or account deleted | Work in progress |
| Questionnaire Responses | Until account deleted or user-initiated deletion | Service delivery |
| Payment Records | 7 years after transaction | Tax and legal compliance |
| Security Logs | 90 days | Security investigation |
| Inactive Accounts | 5 years without login → archived with notice | Storage optimization |
| Database Backups | 7 days (automated), manual snapshots available | Disaster recovery |
Archivis shall delete Customer Personal Data and Confidential Information within 30 days of:
Exceptions:
Archivis shall provide written certification to Customer that it has fully complied with deletion obligations within 30 days of the deletion request.
Before deleting data, Archivis shall provide Customer with opportunity to export complete data package within 7 business days.
By using Archivis Services, Customer agrees to the terms of this Data Processing Agreement.
For questions about this DPA:
Email: privacy@archivis.org
Website: archivis.org/data-processing
Last Updated: May 1, 2026
Version: 1.1
Note: Full EU Standard Contractual Clauses would be included here for customers requiring EU data transfer compliance. These clauses follow the European Commission's approved templates for controller-to-processor transfers.
Data exporter(s):
Data importer(s):
Categories of data subjects: Biography subjects, family members, account holders, institutional administrators
Categories of personal data: Biographical information, personal details, photographs, account information, questionnaire responses, subscription and billing information
Nature of processing: Storage, AI-assisted drafting (for Premium and Institutional subscribers), photo processing, hosting, publication, subscription management
Purpose: Operating the biography platform, digital preservation, publication (when authorized)
Archivis implements comprehensive technical and organizational measures as detailed in Section 3 of this Agreement, including:
| Name | Purpose | Location | Website |
|---|---|---|---|
| AWS | Cloud infrastructure and hosting | United States | aws.amazon.com |
| OpenAI | AI language model services | United States | openai.com |
| Stripe | Payment processing | United States | stripe.com |
| Google Workspace | Email communications | United States | workspace.google.com |