Controls your security team can sign off on
Clearance-based access, secrets encrypted at rest, masking enforced in the query itself, and a written controls guide — so this can be assessed the way you'd assess any other governed system.
Encryption at rest
The credentials for your databases and AI providers are encrypted where they are stored and hidden in the interface — not simply restricted to whoever holds an admin role.
SSO — SAML or OIDC
Sign-in is handed to your existing identity provider, so account creation, removal, and multi-factor policy stay where you already manage them. Administrator access is authenticated separately.
Sensitive data never leaves the database
Sensitive columns are replaced before data leaves your database, rather than the model being asked nicely to ignore them. Anything nobody has classified yet is treated as sensitive until someone decides otherwise.
Approval workflow
Anything that reaches your data or a model provider is reviewed before it goes live, by named approvers set per group in advance — with a complete record of who signed off on what.
IT general controls guide
A written document distinguishing what the application enforces from what remains your infrastructure's responsibility — network segmentation, MFA, disaster recovery and backup, vendor risk review.
Conversation monitoring
Conversations can be flagged for review, alongside separate records of database queries, document searches, scheduled jobs, and system errors.
When "self-hosted" isn't a preference
Some jurisdictions prohibit personal data leaving the country. Where that applies, a hosted AI platform isn't a procurement preference — it's off the table.
Essential Deck runs inside your own environment. Your data and credentials stay on infrastructure you control unless someone deliberately approves a route to an outside provider — and you can forbid that outright for your most sensitive information, so the option is never even available to approve.
What the application enforces, and what it doesn't
A clear split between the controls the product provides and the ones that stay with your infrastructure team.
| The application enforces | You remain responsible for |
|---|---|
| Controlling who can reach which databases, AI models, and document collections | Network segmentation between the app and your data estate |
| Replacing sensitive column values before they leave the database | Telling it which of your columns are sensitive in the first place |
| The review process and the record of who approved what | MFA and account lifecycle in your identity provider |
| Encrypting the credentials it stores for you | Disk, database, and backup encryption for the host environment |
| Usage limits per person and tracking what was spent | Commercial terms and data handling with your model providers |
| Recording errors and usage as they happen | Log retention, shipping, and disaster recovery |