Data retention policies

Data retention is about deciding how long to keep different types of user data before deleting it. Think of it like cleaning your closet — you keep important documents but throw away old receipts you don't need anymore. In products, some data needs to be kept longer than others.

Common retention rules might be: keeping account information while users are active, storing payment records for several years (usually required by law), and keeping usage data for a few months upto a year. Each type of data needs its own expiration date based on how long it's actually useful and what laws require.

The key is having clear rules about what to keep and what to delete. For example, Google Analytics automatically deletes old user data after 14-50 months, depending on your settings. Set similar rules for your product's data — keep what you need, delete what you don't, and be clear about these timeframes in your privacy policy.