Release Notes – Data Retention Feature

Overview

A new Data Retention feature has been introduced to help agencies manage sensitive invoice and credit note data in accordance with their data retention policies. The feature allows agencies to automatically remove confidential information from documents after they have been processed, while retaining essential reference information for troubleshooting and auditing.

New Features

Automatic Data Removal

• Automatically clears sensitive data from invoices and credit notes after they have been acknowledged by the customer.

• The retention period is configurable based on agency requirements.

• Optionally supports clearing data for documents that do not receive an acknowledgment from customer.

Data Preservation

• The Invoice Number and other non-confidential information are retained.

• All sensitive invoice and credit note details are permanently removed once the retention criteria are met.

• Every data retention action is recorded in the document event history for audit purposes.

Configuration

• The feature is deployed disabled by default.

• Each agency can configure its own data retention settings.

• Agencies are recommended to validate the feature in a development environment before enabling it in production.

Additional Information

When data is removed, the invoice or credit note remains accessible using its Invoice Number and retained metadata, while all confidential information is cleared. A Data Retention Removal event is logged against the document to provide a complete audit trail.

User Interface

The following screen shows the Data Retention configuration available within Link4. Agencies can configure the retention period, enable or disable the feature, and choose whether data should be cleared for documents that have not received a customer acknowledgement.

Figure 1: Data Retention Configuration Screen

How the Feature Works

1. The agency enables the Data Retention feature.
2. The retention period is configured (e.g., 30 days after acknowledgement).
3. Once an invoice or credit note is acknowledged by the customer, Link4 monitors the configured retention period.
4. After the retention period expires:
   • Sensitive invoice data is removed.
   • The Invoice Number and other non-confidential fields are retained.
   • A Data Retention Removal event is logged against the document for audit purposes.

Figure 2: Invoice After Data Retention

The data highlighted in red will be removed after the configured data retention period has elapsed.