University of Strathclyde Sport

Data Retention Policy

Last updated: October 2026 · Next review: June 2027

This policy sets out how long each category of personal data collected by Strath Steps is retained, and the process by which it is deleted. It supplements our Privacy Notice.

Retention by data category

Data category	Retention period	Deletion process
Account profile (email, display name)	Until user-initiated deletion, or automatically after 7 years of account inactivity per University of Strathclyde retention policy	User-initiated: immediate via Profile settings. Automatic: scheduled for future implementation.
Step and activity logs (manual entries)	Same as account profile	Deleted via CASCADE when account is deleted
Synced fitness device data	Same as account profile	Deleted via CASCADE when account is deleted
OAuth tokens (fitness device connections)	Until disconnected or account deleted	Revoked requested with the provider, and tokens deleted immediately on disconnect
Team membership (current challenge)	Until you leave the team, the challenge ends, or your account is deleted, whichever comes first	All teams and memberships are cleared automatically when a challenge ends. Also deleted via CASCADE when account is deleted.
Historical team records (which team you were on in each completed challenge)	Same as account profile	Recorded automatically when a challenge ends, so that past team results can still be shown. Deleted via CASCADE when account is deleted.
Badge and challenge records	Same as account profile	Deleted via CASCADE when account is deleted
Audit logs (security events)	Indefinite, user reference removed on account deletion	user_id set to null on deletion; event record retained for security and compliance purposes
Page view analytics	Indefinite, user reference removed on account deletion	user_id set to null on deletion; aggregate counts retained
Sentry error logs	Per Sentry's standard retention (90 days on current plan)	Automatically expired by Sentry; no manual process required

Key points

Users can delete their own account at any time via Profile settings. Deletion is immediate, irreversible, and removes all personal data via database constraints and a dedicated deletion function.
Per University of Strathclyde data retention policy, accounts are also subject to automatic deletion after 7 years. This automated process is not yet implemented in the application and is tracked as an outstanding development item ahead of public launch.
Two categories of data outlive account deletion by design: audit logs and page view analytics. In both cases, the user reference is removed on deletion, meaning the record can no longer be linked back to the individual — this is retained anonymous, aggregate data for security monitoring and usage analytics, not personal data under GDPR once the identifying link is removed.
Sentry error data follows Sentry's own retention schedule rather than ours, since it is a third-party processor. No intentional personal data is sent to Sentry.

For questions about this policy, contact the University's Information Governance Unit at dataprotection@strath.ac.uk.