Your systems.
Your keys.
Your control.

This website, and your systems

This website is a set of static pages served through Cloudflare’s global network. It has no login, no client portal, no forms, no analytics and no client archive. Like any website, it depends on its edge provider to process request data, such as IP addresses and browser details, to deliver pages and block abuse. The privacy notice sets this out.

A client’s private AI, document systems or portal belong in a separate environment, with their own credentials, administration and hosting decisions. We specify the same separation when we design a firm’s public website and its authenticated client space.

What your firm should own

We specify that the firm owns its data and everything derived from it: indexes, embeddings, logs and backups. Domain names, software accounts and subscriptions sit in the firm’s name wherever the vendor’s terms allow. Some rights stay with the vendor, such as the terms of a model or software licence. The architecture record lists each one and its conditions.

Administrator and recovery credentials go to people the firm names. The engagement defines who owns any hardware, and the terms that apply to code or configuration written for the project.

Access you can see

The engagement defines what access Desgarde holds, for how long and through which accounts. We use named individual accounts, not shared ones, with the rights the current task requires. Where a stewardship role needs continuing access, the firm can list it, and the agreement sets how it is reviewed and withdrawn.

Remote administration happens only where the agreement allows it. For an isolated or air-gapped environment, the design sets out how maintenance happens on site and how updates are checked before they cross the boundary.

Principles in each design

Identity comes first. Storage, retrieval and interfaces follow the access model, and permissions carry through to the AI index, the retrieved passages and the answer. We specify encryption in transit and at rest where the components support it. Administrators use phishing-resistant authentication where supported, on accounts separate from daily work.

Security events are logged, and a named person reviews them. Outbound connections are documented, and the design states which ones are allowed. Changes follow an agreed approval path. We keep dependencies few, since each one is a party that can fail or change its terms. How permissions reach an AI answer.

Maintenance and recovery

The engagement defines who applies updates, who reviews logs, who manages accounts and who answers users. That may be the firm’s own team, its IT provider, or Desgarde under a stewardship agreement. Support hours, response targets and exclusions are set in writing. None is assumed.

Where a system holds data, handover includes a documented backup routine and a restore test that the firm’s nominated people witness and sign. The firm receives a recovery runbook and an inventory of components, versions and vendors. A website or identity project has different recovery needs, and its acceptance tests reflect them. Why a backup is only the beginning.

Reporting a concern

For each engagement, the agreement names contacts on both sides, the reporting channel and what each party reports. Decisions on notice to authorities, clients or affected people stay with the firm and its advisers. We supply the technical facts they need.

To report a suspected security issue with this website, or someone impersonating Desgarde, write to contact@desgarde.com with the subject line “Security”. Describe what you saw and leave out personal data. This is an ordinary mailbox, not an emergency line.

Leaving, by design

Exit belongs in the architecture, not in a later negotiation. We favour components that keep documents in their original formats, export databases to standard formats and store configuration as readable files. The architecture record names each third-party component and the route away from it.

The engagement defines what the firm receives at exit, such as credentials, documentation and a final export, and how any remaining Desgarde access is closed. Infrastructure that leaves you free to move.

Who decides what

The firm decides purposes, lawful grounds, retention and who may see what. Its legal and compliance advisers interpret its obligations. Its IT provider runs existing systems as agreed. Desgarde designs, builds, tests and documents the new systems, and carries out the stewardship the agreement defines.

This page describes principles, not a contract. Each project’s acceptance criteria and written terms decide what applies, and assign each shared task to one party by name.