Data Protection¶

Circuit KYC implements multiple layers of data protection to ensure identity information remains secure and private.

Encryption¶

Data at Rest¶

All stored data is encrypted using AES-256-GCM:

Identity records
Audit logs
API keys (hashed, not encrypted)
Credentials

┌─────────────────────────────────────────┐
│           Application Layer             │
├─────────────────────────────────────────┤
│         Encryption Service              │
│  ┌─────────────────────────────────┐   │
│  │  AES-256-GCM + AWS KMS Keys     │   │
│  └─────────────────────────────────┘   │
├─────────────────────────────────────────┤
│         Database (Encrypted)            │
└─────────────────────────────────────────┘

Data in Transit¶

All data in transit uses TLS 1.3:

API requests/responses
Internal service communication
Database connections
Message queue traffic

Key Management¶

Keys are managed through AWS KMS:

Automatic key rotation (annual)
Hardware Security Modules (HSMs)
Separate keys per environment
Audit logging of key usage

We use blind indexing to enable searching encrypted data without exposing plaintext:

# How blind indexing works
blind_index = HMAC-SHA256(secret_key, plaintext)

# The index can be searched, but the plaintext cannot be recovered

This allows:

✅ Looking up identities by phone/email
✅ Checking for duplicates
❌ Cannot reverse the index to get plaintext
❌ Cannot search partial matches

Data Isolation¶

Multi-Tenancy¶

Each tenant's data is logically isolated:

Separate encryption keys per tenant
Row-level security in database
Tenant ID required for all queries
Cross-tenant access impossible

Network Isolation¶

┌─────────────────────────────────────┐
│         Public Internet             │
└──────────────┬──────────────────────┘
               │
        ┌──────┴──────┐
        │  WAF + ALB  │
        └──────┬──────┘
               │
┌──────────────┴──────────────────────┐
│          Private VPC                 │
│  ┌─────────┐  ┌─────────┐           │
│  │   API   │  │  Worker │           │
│  │  Pods   │  │  Pods   │           │
│  └────┬────┘  └────┬────┘           │
│       │            │                 │
│  ┌────┴────────────┴────┐           │
│  │   Private Subnets    │           │
│  │  (No Internet Access)│           │
│  │  ┌────────────────┐  │           │
│  │  │    Database    │  │           │
│  │  └────────────────┘  │           │
│  └──────────────────────┘           │
└─────────────────────────────────────┘

Sensitive Data Handling¶

PII Classification¶

Data Type	Classification	Protection
Full Name	PII	Encrypted
Email	PII	Encrypted + Blind Index
Phone	PII	Encrypted + Blind Index
Date of Birth	Sensitive PII	Encrypted
National ID	Highly Sensitive	Encrypted, limited access
Address	PII	Encrypted

Data Minimization¶

We only store data necessary for KYC operations:

✅ Required for verification
✅ Required for audit compliance
❌ Marketing data
❌ Behavioral tracking
❌ Third-party sharing (without consent)

Access Controls¶

Role-Based Access¶

Role	Permissions
API User	Read/write via API only
Support	Read-only, no PII access
Admin	Full access with audit log
Security	Audit logs, no data access

Audit Logging¶

Every data access is logged:

{
  "timestamp": "2024-01-15T10:30:00Z",
  "actor": "api_key_hash",
  "action": "read",
  "resource": "identity",
  "resource_id": "hash_only",
  "ip_address": "192.168.1.1",
  "user_agent": "CircuitKYC-Python/1.0"
}

Data Deletion¶

User-Initiated Deletion¶

Users can request deletion via:

API: DELETE /api/v1/identity/{id}
Dashboard: Settings → Delete Data
Email: privacy@circuitkyc.com

Deletion Process¶

Soft delete - Data marked for deletion
Grace period - 30 days to recover
Hard delete - Data permanently removed
Backup purge - Removed from backups within 90 days

We comply with GDPR Article 17:

Process deletion requests within 30 days
Delete from all systems including backups
Notify third parties of deletion
Provide deletion confirmation

Incident Response¶

Data Breach Protocol¶

Detection - Automated monitoring + manual review
Containment - Isolate affected systems
Assessment - Determine scope and impact
Notification - Within 72 hours (GDPR)
Remediation - Fix vulnerability
Post-mortem - Prevent recurrence

Breach Notification¶

If a breach affects your data:

Email notification within 72 hours
Description of data affected
Steps we're taking
Recommended actions for you

Data Export¶

Export your data anytime:

curl -X POST https://api.circuitkyc.com/api/v1/data-export \
  -H "X-API-Key: sk_live_your_key" \
  -d '{"format": "json"}'

Exports include:

All identity records
Audit logs
Credentials issued
Billing history

Questions?¶

Data Protection Officer: dpo@circuitkyc.com
Privacy Policy: circuitkyc.com/privacy
GDPR Requests: privacy@circuitkyc.com