Where your data lives
Your organisation’s data is stored in London (AWS eu-west-2): the database, your documents and records, and the logs. Each organisation’s rows are isolated by row-level security, encrypted at rest and backed up daily. Models running in London produce documents and answers from Sted’s knowledge base. The onboarding conversation is produced by models running within AWS’s European regions, entering through London.
What this is
This page describes Sted’s Live service, the one you sign in to, as its infrastructure is configured. It covers everything you put into StedOS: your organisation’s profile from onboarding, documents, records and their attachments, training records, tasks, questions to Steward and feedback.
Sted does not connect to your cloud, code or HR systems to collect evidence automatically, so the only data it holds about your operations is what you and your colleagues enter.
Where to find it
There is no screen for this in StedOS. Everything below is configuration of the Live service, and the Ask Steward and account and security pages cover the controls you do see.
How it works
Where each kind of data is held
| Data | Where it is held | Protection |
|---|---|---|
| Your organisation’s profile, documents, records, training, tasks and questions | Amazon Aurora PostgreSQL in AWS London | Row-level security, encryption at rest, daily backups |
| Record attachments | AWS London | Scanned for malware before anyone can download them |
| Sign-in | Sted’s sign-in service at auth.sted.digital | A second factor for every password account |
| Amazon SES in AWS London, from no-reply@sted.digital | Sent from Sted’s own domain | |
| Payment | Stripe Checkout | Sted keeps your subscription state, not card details |
Each row above is how the Live service is configured.
Sted’s database keeps three copies of its storage across separate data centres in the London region. StedOS receives a signed-in session from the sign-in service and never sees your password.
How organisations are kept apart
All customers share one database, and every organisation’s rows are isolated by PostgreSQL row-level security in the database itself, not only by application code. Inside your organisation, what each person can read depends on their level; the permissions table below lists the main data classes.
Encryption, backups and recovery
The database is encrypted at rest. It is backed up daily, backups are kept for 35 days on top of 14 days of point-in-time recovery, and deletion protection is on.
AI models and what they see
Documents and answers from Sted’s knowledge base are produced by models running in London. The onboarding conversation is produced by models running within AWS’s European regions, entering through London. Every call that takes your input is screened by a Bedrock guardrail first.
No third-party model provider ever sees your prompts or answers. AWS runs the models inside its own account and keeps inputs only as its published retention policy allows; Sted’s Live account uses AWS’s default policy (measured 18 October 2026). Processing in AWS’s European regions is not a restricted transfer under UK GDPR: the EU is covered by the UK’s adequacy regulations.
When you ask Steward about your own data, he gathers it as you, under your level and plan. People’s names reach the model only from tools that administrators and Policy and Process Owners use, and the subject of a restricted or confidential record never reaches it.
Network and monitoring
A web application firewall in front of StedOS rate-limits its requests, with a tighter limit on sign-in. Amazon GuardDuty, AWS Security Hub and AWS Config watch the Live account for threats and configuration drift. Web pages reach you through Amazon CloudFront’s global edge network, whose firewall and certificates AWS requires to be created in its US East region; your data is not stored there.
Permissions
Nobody changes where data lives from inside StedOS. Who can read each class of data inside your organisation:
| Data | Administrator | Policy and Process Owner | Reviewer | Personnel |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Approved documents | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Draft documents | Yes | Drafts of documents they own | No | No |
| Training register | Yes | Yes | No | No |
| Audit readiness | Yes | No | No | No |
| Feedback reports from your organisation | Yes | Their own | Their own | Their own |
The rows follow each level’s read rights in Sted. These limits are enforced by the database’s row-level security as well as by the app.
Limits and plan features
Every plan runs on the same Live service, so everything on this page applies to Preview as much as to Full Management System. Sted does not publish a retention period for Ask questions and answers yet. Sted’s knowledge base and the product are in British English only.
Related guides
- UK GDPR and EU GDPR: the obligations you have as a controller when you choose a processor.
- Supplier due diligence: what to ask any supplier, including Sted, before you trust it with data.
- Ask Steward: what Steward reads when you ask about your own data.
- Your account and security: sign-in, second factors and closing your account.
- International transfer: when data leaving the UK triggers transfer rules.
- Sending feedback: what a feedback report carries and who can read it.
Frequently asked questions
Is my Sted data stored in the UK?
Yes. Your organisation’s data is stored in London (AWS eu-west-2): the database, your documents and records, and the logs. Documents and answers from Sted’s knowledge base are produced by models running in London. The onboarding conversation is produced by models running within AWS’s European regions, entering through London. Web pages reach you through AWS’s global edge network, whose firewall and certificates AWS requires to sit in its US East region, and card payments are taken by Stripe, not by Sted.
Can another Sted customer see my data?
No. Every organisation’s rows are separated by row-level security inside the database, not only by the application’s code. A request is answered only from the rows of the organisation you are signed in to, at your level.
Does Sted train AI on my data?
No. Neither Sted nor any third-party model provider trains on your prompts or documents; AWS does not share them with any third-party model provider.
How long does Sted keep my questions to Steward?
Sted has not published a retention period for Ask questions and answers yet. Leaving Ask hides a conversation from view but does not delete it.
Does Sted store my card details?
No. Payment is taken by Stripe Checkout, and Sted keeps the state of your subscription, not your card. Preview, the free plan, never touches Stripe at all.