Data and privacy
Boards are private by default and only reachable by people you invite. Files live in private storage and are served through signed URLs that expire, never from a public bucket. Deleted clusters are recoverable for 30 days, then purged. Everything you put in can be exported or read back out through the API.
Who can see a board
Private by default. A new cluster is visible only to you until you do one of two things:
- Invite someone — a named person, as editor or viewer
- Create a public link — view-only, and by default carrying a noindex instruction so search engines skip it
Making a board genuinely public and discoverable is a separate, reviewed step — see Explore. Nothing becomes public by accident.
Where files live
In private object storage, served back through signed URLs that expire. There is no public bucket and nothing is reachable by guessing a path.
Uploads go from your browser straight to storage. A file referenced by a board is protected from cleanup for as long as the board references it.
Retention
| Thing | Kept |
|---|---|
| Deleted cluster | 30 days in the trash, then purged |
| Board version snapshots | For rollback and workspace recovery |
| Files no longer referenced by any board | Eligible for cleanup after a grace period |
| Resolved comments | Archived, not deleted |
Restoring a cluster within the trash window restores its images with it.
Getting your data out
Nothing is trapped:
- Board export — PNG or PDF
- Document export — PDF, Markdown, HTML, and
.fdx/ Fountain for screenplays - Original files — downloadable exactly as uploaded
- REST API — read every board and card programmatically
Accounts and access
Sign-in is a one-time emailed code. There is no password to be reused or leaked.
API tokens are stored only as a hash — the value is shown once and cannot be recovered. A token acts as you, reaching exactly what your account reaches under the same access rules the app uses, and can be revoked at any time with immediate effect.
Error reporting
Errors are recorded first-party, in Clusters' own infrastructure, to fix crashes. There is no Google Analytics and no third-party error monitoring service in the app.
Legal
The full policies: Privacy · Terms · Cookies.
Those documents govern; this page is a plain-language summary of how the product behaves.
Frequently asked questions
Are my boards private by default?
Yes. A new cluster is visible only to you until you invite someone or create a public link.
Can someone guess the URL of my image?
No. Files are in private storage and served through signed URLs that expire. There is no public bucket to enumerate.
How do I get all my data out?
Export boards and documents, download original files, or read everything programmatically through the REST API.
Machine-readable: /docs/account/data-and-privacy.md · /llms.txt